It Took Some Time
by lanacullen21
Summary: Five years ago, Bella Swan ran away to escape the toughest decision of her life. Now she's back in Forks and is different than ever. What has she been running from? Her past or herself?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Everyone in this story belongs to the fabulous, Stephenie Meyer.**

**This is my first fanfic and I'm nervous as hell! Please, please enjoy it! I understand that it's a little confusing. Sorry!**

EPOV

I watched Bella on the big screen television. She was being interviewed by an Ivana Oakley on her singing career. Five years ago, Bella had left Forks due to the pain of having to choose between me and the dog, Jacob Black. Not wanting either of us to disappear, she had vanished instead. Apparently she had not known that just because her physical being was not here, didn't mean that I was not still going to be in love with her for the rest of eternity. I watched as she laughed on the screen and flicked her bangs out of her face. Fame had made her impossibly more beautiful than when she had vanished.

"_So Isabella….any lucky man in your life?"_ Ivana asked my Bella.

Bella gave a hesitant laugh in response. _"I haven't had much time to explore in a love life."_

I cringed, but was actually happy with her answer. The thought of my Bella with any other man sickened me.

"_Really? No one?"_ Ivana asked persistently. _"Rumor has it, you were seeing guitarist, Bane Anderson."_

Bella only nodded and flashed a small smile. _"Yes. We were dating for a little while. But Bane and I went our separate ways. We're still good friends though. Nothing too serious."_

"_Do you have any plans from here?"_

Bella looked slightly thoughtful for a second, but answered Ivana's question slowly with a soft smile. _"I'm at this point in my life where I'm doing really well, but I'm still unsure of who I am. So I'm going back to my hometown in Forks, Washington in a few days for my friend, Angela's, wedding and to reconnect with my father. And who knows. Maybe in a year I'll have a new album coming out."_

A squeal pierced the living room. "Here?! She's coming here?" Alice asked in frantic delight. I nodded at my sister. Not only did Alice love Bella's music, she loved Bella. She was so upset about her leaving although Alice had known that Bella was leaving before I did. But Bella had asked, _begged_, her not to tell me. And if there was one thing Alice was good at besides shopping, it was being loyal to those she cared about. Even if it broke her inside.

My un-beating heart almost leapt out of my chest. Bella was coming back to Forks. She was coming here. Even if it wasn't to see me, I was glad she hadn't forgotten her home.

JPOV

"_I'm at this point in my life where I'm doing really well, but I'm still unsure of who I am. So I'm going back to my hometown in Forks, Washington in a few days for my friend, Angela's, wedding and to reconnect with my father. And who knows. Maybe in __a year I'll have a new album coming out."_

My eyes were on the television in Sam and Emily's living room. I stared at the gorgeous babe that had been my best friend and the flame of my life five years ago. It had surprised all of us when Bella had left and had hurt like hell. Seeing her life on t.v as she grew into this worldwide celebrity was unrealistic. More unrealistic was that she was coming here. She would be in Washington in just a few days. That caught me completely off guard. I was well aware that the rest of the packs eyes had shifted to me once she had said that. They knew my feelings for her were still very strong as the day she had left. Nothing had changed. Sure I had slept with other women in the mean time, but they would never be my Bells. No girl would ever be her.

"How are you feeling, Jake?" Emily asked softly beside me.

I shrugged. "I'm glad that she's coming here. But it doesn't change much."

They all nodded. I knew they were all just as excited that she would be back in town as I was, but they weren't the ones whose heart had been shattered.


	2. Chapter 2

BPOV

"_Now entering Seattle, Washington," __the flight attendants voice boomed over the intercom, waking me up. _

I walked off the plane and grabbed my luggage. My heart was racing and my mind was pounding with questions. _What if I saw Edward? Or Jake?_ I had not planned to come here for that. _What would I say if they wanted answers?_ My face went from dark to light when my eyes spotted Charlie standing in the crowd of airport passengers waving a large white sign that said BELLA in black sharpie. Charlie saw me and weaved his way through the crowd to meet me. We met halfway and I jumped into my father's arms.

"I've missed you, honey," he greeted roughly. It almost sounded like he was crying.

"I've missed you too, Dad."

He grabbed my larger luggage and threw them into the back of his sheriff's car while I climbed into the passenger seat.

"Tattoos, Bella?" Charlie asked, climbing into the driver's seat. Disapproval was clearly in his voice. Without even looking at him, I knew he was referring to the sun and the moon on each of my forearms. I yawned.

"It's just two, Dad." My voice was more wary than I had realized. I sighed and leaned my head against the seat with my eyes closed. It was quiet for a second and I knew Charlie was trying to adapt to the adult version of the teenage girl he once raised.

"Tired?" Charlie asked.

"Jet lag."

He chuckled and drove off. I got settled in my seat, my eyes still closed. "Thanks for picking me up, Dad," I mumbled.

"It's nothing, Bella. Just get some rest. This is a three hour ride remember?"

Slowly, I drifted off to sleep, my mind free from all thoughts.

EPOV

"She's here!" Alice hissed from behind me. "She's in Washington."

I turned around abruptly to peer at Alice with a sigh. "Alice, you can't spy on her."

She pouted. "Why not? She was my sister, Edward. So don't go making this about you."

I watched her stomp upstairs, huffing and cursing under her breath. She was right. I was a pompous idiot for being so selfish. Bella had not only meant the world to me, but she had meant the world to all of us. They all missed her. Emmett and Esme were just as excited about Bella's arrival as Alice was. I didn't want to hurt their feelings, but I wasn't going to expect her to come see any of us. We had left before without much to say. Why shouldn't she be obliged to do the same again?

BPOV

I was aware of someone shaking me gently and calling for me to wake up. My eyes slowly opened, trying to adjust to the sunlight. Charlie's face was hovering over mine. "We're home, Bella."

I exhaled groggily and slipped out of the car. Charlie had already grabbed by bags and placed them by the front door of the house. The house, I thought. It was still the same house I had lived in years ago. Nothing had changed. I walked in and let my eyes get their feel of what I had been missing. Charlie had kept it nice and tidy, surprising me. He wasn't much of the cleaning type. But then I guess he had to make do when I was gone. I wondered if maybe he had only done this for my visit, to show me he was alright without me. Both thoughts made me frown. Was Charlie ok? I glanced at him when he came in and dropped my luggage by the living room sofa. He caught me looking and gave me a small grin. He seemed happy enough. I wandered upstairs to my room, slowly swinging the closed door open.

My room was exactly how I had left it. The bed was closer to the left wall and the blue sheets had been replaced with pale green ones. The curtain shielding the window was a light shade of cream and went nicely with the shade of my dresser. I sighed in content. I was thrilled to be back home.

"Bella!"

I ran downstairs to see Charlie standing at the bottom with an excited smile on his face. "Yeah, Dad?" I ran a hand through my dark, tasseled hair and yawned. Charlie's smile was way too suspicious.

"Get some rest, Bell. Billy Black's throwing a little get together at his house later on tonight. And everyone really wants to see you."

My heart dropped. This was the last thing I expected. "Aw, Dad. I don't think…"

"Now now, Bella. You're going. You've been away for too long," Charlie ordered.

"Fine," I grumbled. "Wake me up in two hours. Angela's coming to take me to get a rental car for while I'm here."

After Charlie agreed to get me when Angela was on her way, I went back upstairs and collapsed onto my bed. The plan was to stay away from past men in my life and here I was going to a get-together tonight where Jacob Black would be. If only Charlie knew.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Disclaimer: The only people I own are the ones mentioned in the interview in the first chapter!**_

BPOV

Later on that evening, Angela and I had stopped at the only car rental place in Forks. After listening to the sales clerk ramble on about different choices of cars that I should settle for, I had finally decided on a black Ford Escape. It was a nice size and very decent looking.

"As long as you can drive it," Angela had said. I laughed lightly and nodded. The sales man beamed at me and handed me some papers to sign which I quickly did. My eyes kept glancing at the clock. I had an hour to grab some things from the store that Charlie had asked me to get for the party. I still felt queasy at the idea of just arriving in La Push. What if I wasn't exactly welcomed? I had agreed to marry their enemy and after deciding not to choose between a werewolf and vampire, I had left one of their members heartbroken.

I said goodbye to Angela, promising her that I would pick her up tomorrow for bridesmaid fittings in Port Angeles. I quickly went to the grocery store, grabbing two large bags of freezing ice and a fruit bowl. The clerk was such a fan of my music that he had even offered to help me with my items, which of course I gradually accepted after feeling how much the ice weighed. My phone rang just after I climbed back into the driver's seat and after checking the caller I.D, I flipped it open. "Yeah, Dad?"

"Bella? Are you alright? Did you get the ice and fruit?" Charlie's voice sounded more anxious than necessary.

A long, exasperated sigh escaped my lips. "Yes. Got everything. Anything else?"

"No. That's it. Now remember Bella. No trying to get out of this. Be on your best behavior."

"Yes, sir," I replied seriously, barely able to contain a laugh. Jeez! You would think the sheriff was talking to a nine year old. I hung up my phone and sped off to the place I had spent most of my pastime at. _La Push_.

I pulled up in front of the Black's house. I was surprised at how easy it was for me to remember which path to take. Then again, part of me would never forget. As soon as I jumped out of the black Escape, my dad was standing on the porch. "Jeez, Bella! Couldn't you get a plain, old car for once?!"

"No, Dad! They don't make buggies anymore," I called back, almost laughing at my answer. I began grabbing items from my trunk, realizing that the ice was going to be difficult for my single body to carry. Out of nowhere, two shadows hovered over me and arms began grabbing the bags of ice. I spun around to see a beaming Embry and Quil.

"Hey, Bella! Need a hand?" Embry asked. I practically jumped him, wrapping my arms around his waist. "Who knew you would react this way to me grabbing a bag of ice?" Embry laughed. I smiled and turned to hug Quil who squeezed me tightly with his free arm.

"Long time no see," he said, releasing me from a vice grip. I grabbed the fruit and headed back to the house with the boys on both sides of me. As soon as I stepped a toe into the Black residence, I was greeted by many other La Push members. Billy shook my hand, Emily pulled me into a warm hug, Sam and Seth gave me welcoming grins, and Leah only nodded in what I assumed was her greeting. I threw Charlie a glare. He had told me this was a small get-together with just a few people. This seemed like a little more than I had bargained for. There was no sign of Jake however. I wasn't sure if I should be relaxed about that or thoroughly concerned. As if on cue from hearing my thoughts, Sam came to stand by me next to the counter.

"He's at First Beach," he whispered close to my ear. I looked up at him to see his encouraging smile. He gave a nod towards the door, and taking his hint, I stepped outside to head to the lake.

Sure enough, Jake was standing there in the sand close to the water with nothing but a torn pair of jeans on. I couldn't help but notice how tone he had become. Underneath that heated russet skin, the tender muscles of his childhood had hardened immensely. He almost seemed made of rock. I crossed my arms over my chest and came to stand ten feet behind him.


	4. Chapter 4

JPOV

I wasn't sure if it was just a desired hallucination, but I could almost feel her near me. I didn't want to turn and be completely fooled by my needs.

"Penny for your thoughts," a small voice said from behind me. I turned, almost knocking myself back by the vision before me. This was real. She was really standing here in all her radiant beauty in front of me. Without even thinking, I had her in my arms in two steps. I didn't want to let go. I had been dreaming of this for so long.

"Jake. Can't. Breathe," she gasped. Reluctantly I pulled away, dropping her on her feet, but keeping my hands on her waist.

"Sorry, Bells. It's just been along time."

She laughed, a sound that could rival angels. "It sure has." She stared at me with wide brown eyes. "I've missed you, Jake." Her voice was barely a whisper, but I heard it. And once again I pulled her tightly into my arms.

"I've missed you too, Bella. So much," I breathed into her flower smelling hair. We pulled away to stand side by side on the shore. She took a seat on the sand with her legs pulled into her chest. Of course, I followed to sit close to her.

"How have you been, Jake?"

I inhaled sharply. "As good as I could be over the last five years."

She nodded. "That's good."

"I see you on t.v all the time. You've really become something, Bella."

She laughed again. "Not really."

"Yes really. I own all of the magazines with pictures of you in it. Some are even on my wall." I chuckled, running a hand through my shabby, shoulder- length hair. That earned me another beautiful laugh from her and a smack on my arm. I turned to stare at her. God, was she amazing to look at? Her dark chocolate hair had grown to stop at her lower back and was slightly wavy. There were wispy bangs sweeping over her right eye. Her skin had a sort of fluorescent glow that radiated around her as if she were shining. She wore a forest green t-shirt that clung to her curves. _Her curves?_ She wasn't the same form anymore. Her chest had at least gotten a size bigger and I doubt they were store bought. She wore a pair of dark jeans that clung to her curvaceous hips. Everything was different about her. There were tons of different rings on each of her perfect fingers; some opal, emerald, and ruby. I couldn't help but be alarmed by the ear piercing and tattoos that had permeated her body.

"Jake?"

"Hmm?"

"Will you stop staring?" Bella sighed, exasperated.

I shook my head out of my reverie and gave her a bashful smile. "Oh, sorry. But really, Bella? Piercings and tattoos?!"

She laughed. "Well, Jake. Sometimes a girl feels the urge to be a rebel."

I burst out laughing at the thought of her being a rebel and grabbed her arms. On the left there was a crescent moon and on the right there was a sun surrounded by rays. I smiled at this, knowing the reference the sun had to me. I looked up at her with a brow raised.

"What?!" She asked, pulling away. "I just liked what I saw and wanted it!"

"Uh huh. Sure, Bells. Whatever you say?" I chuckled, still staring at her pure perfection. She smacked me on the arm once more just causing me to burst into laughter. She rolled her eyes and jumped to her feet, making my laughter subside as I quickly scrambled to my feet as well. "No, Bella! I'm sorry. You're not leaving, are you?"

She only swatted the air and giggled. "No, you silly wolf! It's just that I think we should start heading back before Charlie sends a search squad out for us. You don't want to be arrested for kidnapping a celebrity now, do you?"

"No, mam!" I replied with an exaggerated salute. She rolled her eyes and sighed, grabbing my arm and pulling me back towards the house.

"Come on, silly! Before you end up in the doghouse."


	5. Chapter 5

BPOV

I didn't really want to leave, a feeling that I immediately regretted. I wasn't supposed to want to be around Jake. I wasn't here for him. He threw me glances as he walked me to the rental truck and leaned against the driver's door. "Will you come back?" he asked. It almost came out as a plea.

"Do you…want me to come back?"

He rolled his eyes and made a little scoffing sound. "Of course I want you to come back. Come on, Bells! You're smarter than that."

I laughed and before I could stop myself, the words just came out. "Then I'll be back."

That seemed to make him relax and a cheerful smile came over his beautiful face. "Good. Tomorrow?"

I shook my head. "I can't. Angela's making me get fitted for a bridesmaid dress."

He frowned in a thoughtful manner. "Friday, then."

I smiled. "Friday it is, Mr. Black." I put my hand out in a professional business manner. He only grabbed it and pulled me into another vice grip. He breathed into my hair and I could almost feel him smile.

"I'm glad you're here, Bells."

"Me too, Jake." He let me go and turned to open my door for me. With one arm, he swept me up into the driver's seat. I smiled and drove off, knowing he was waiting for me to disappear from his sight.

I woke up the next morning to my tiny black cell phone ringing. "Ah, what the hell?!" I groaned before flipping it open. "Hello?"

"_Bella! Are you coming?" _

"Angela?!" I squealed and then glanced at the alarm clock. Shit. It was ten thirty! I was supposed to pick Angela up by eleven. I jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom.

"_Bella?"_

"Yeah, Ang. I'm on my way." I closed the phone and turned on the shower. How could I be so tired? Not like I was out the entire night. I climbed into the shower and threw on some clothes fifteen minutes later. After looking my white see through blouse, black under top, and dark denim jeans over in the mirror, I was satisfied that this was as good as it was going to get. I threw on my tennis shoes, quickly put my sopping wet hair in a ponytail, and ran downstairs. As I drove to Angela and Ben's house, I could have sworn I saw a white blur flash by my window. I shook my head. It must have just been a hallucination due to my lack of sleep. I pulled up and waited as Angela ran out of the house and to the car.

"Hey, Bella," she greeted as she climbed into the passenger seat.

"Hey, Angela." I waved to Ben who was watching us from the door before I drove off.

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah. I just thought I saw something," I glanced at her and saw she was waiting for me to continue. I smiled. "It's nothing."

We spent almost the whole day in Port Angeles's Bridal Shop. First I was trying on a red gown and then a yellow sundress. Finally Angela was stuck on a pale pink strapless, knee length dress. Thank God! I don't know how many more dresses I could try on. I mean I was sort of used to it the Hollywood style. I was always being made over by stylists, but at the end of day I always wanted something simple, like me. We stopped at Antonio's, a small, decent Italian restaurant for dinner. Angela asked me questions about celebrities I had met and parties I had been too. I answered her questions good-naturedly. It was clear that she couldn't get over the fact that after high school I became this big time singer. She asked me about my relationship with Bane.

Later on that evening, I drove Angela home and after saying good bye, I sped home. "Bella! Is that you?" Charlie called as I entered from the kitchen door.

"Yeah, Dad. It's me. I brought you some leftovers from Antonio's."

I heard him grunt in response and slipped the box into the refrigerator. Charlie was sitting in the black leather armchair I had given him for last Christmas. He stared warily at the television. "Everything alright, Dad?" I asked as I plopped on the sofa, closing my heavy lids.

He turned to smile at me slightly. "Long day at work. Looks like we have another series of killings."

I sat up at that. "Killings."

"Yeah. It's not the same though. There's something weirder about these ones."

"What do you mean weirder?" I tried to keep the alarm out of my voice.

"Well, each victim was missing a certain part of their body. And they looked like they had been drained."

"Drained?" I squeaked.

"Yeah. No energy, no color, no signs of life."

I could have quite literally passed out right then and there, but I had to make a call. I got up and made my way to the stairs. "Hey! Where are you off to?" Charlie called, sounding worried.

"Oh, just to bed. I had a long day too. Trying on dresses for Angela's wedding, ya know?" I lied slightly.

Charlie seemed to take it and gave me a warm smile. "Well, ok. Goodnight, honey."

"Night, Dad," I mumbled before charging up the stairs. I grabbed my cell and dialed a number straight from memory.

"Hello?" a groggy, obviously sleeping voice answered.

"Jake. It's Isabella." I had no idea why I used my full first name. Jake seemed to snort at this but his voice immediately seemed alert.

"What's with the formalities, Bella? I know who you are! Is everything ok?"

I sighed. "I don't think I can make it tomorrow."

Jacob growled a little. Apparently he thought Edward was my prison guard still. Man, was he sadly mistaken. "Why?"

"Well, with the whole murdering thing going around, I don't think it'll be safe," I lied. Jacob's hard tone seemed to vanish and he sounded extremely calm.

"Bella, you'll be in La Push. There's no place safer than at my house."

I knew he was right. The wolves had to be more dangerous and stronger than they were five years ago when most were just children. But still I felt an uneasy emotion in the bottom of my stomach. What if worst came to worst and they found out my secret? That I was practically a freak now. "Come on, Bella. Please. I haven't seen you in five years!"

"Jake, you seen me yesterday," I joked.

"You know what I mean, Bella!" he snapped, half laughing.

"Fine. I'll be over first thing in the morning."

"Yes!" Jake shouted triumphantly over the receiver. I laughed.

"Goodnight, Jake."

"Night, Bells."

And with that we hung up. I lied on my bed, my eyes staring deeply into the ceiling. What had I gotten myself into now?


	6. Chapter 6

JPOV

I was glad that Bella had decided to spend some time with me today. I had missed the girl like crazy. I peered up as Quil and Embry ran through the door with smiles on their faces. "What?"

Embry just smirked. "Oh, nothing. So when is Bella coming over?"

I only glared at him. I could feel the attraction that Bella had caused in all of us except Sam, who was quite content with Emily and Jared who was happy with Kim. I understood that Bella was beautiful to look at, but it still made my blood boil when my pack brothers panted over her like wanton dogs! She was mine. Always had been and always will be, I promised myself. If I had to kill the bloodsucker and my pack brothers to get her, so be it. Seth came through the door, looking both excited and serious.

"We have to go!" he stated. "We got a lead on the killings. Sam, Jared, Paul, Leah, and Collin are already on the chase."

Before he could finish, we all headed out the door, phasing and running wildly into the woods. I quickly thought of Bella. Hopefully she wouldn't be too mad and think I stood her up. I'd make it up to her later.

EPOV

Alice gasped and I quickly turned to see her wide eyes growing distant. Jasper was by her side as always, holding her hand until she returned to us. She finally began to focus and we all waited patiently for her tell us what she had foreseen.

"Alice," Carlisle called to her. "What is it?"

"Something powerful in the woods. I think they are responsible for the murder cases."

"What are we waiting for then?" Emmett roared in excitement. "Let's get out there and kick some ass!" Rosalie hit her husband playfully on the arm while glaring at him. I don't think she would ever understand why her husband was such a glutton for danger.

"I do have to agree with Emmett," Carlisle finally stated. "We might be the only one's capable of stopping these murders."

"But we don't even know if they are vampires," Esme, my mother, countered. I had to agree with her on that. As willing as I was to fight off doom to keep my mind off of Bella, we were really going into this situation blindfolded. Alice stood then and walked to stop a few feet from the door.

"We'll be finding out," she murmured. I nodded and followed her along with Carlisle, Emmett, and Jasper who was already at Alice's side. I didn't have to turn to see that the rest of my family were following reluctantly.

BPOV

I arrived at the Black residence around noon. Slowly I made my way up the rusty steps and knocked on the front door. There was silence. I tried again, rapping my hand lightly but louder on the door. Someone had to be home. I bounded off the porch and made my way to the garage where Jacob usually worked on his Rabbit. The garage was quiet and nowhere was Jacob to be found. Did he stand me up? How dare he?! "Wait until I get my hands on you, Jacob Black!" I grumbled to nothing but air. I went to sit back on the steps of the house, fumbling with the heart locket around my neck. A vibration in my back pocket caused me to jump before I pulled out my tiny red phone and flipped it open. "Yes?"

"Bella?" a familiar, husky voice asked over the line.

"Ryan?" I squealed into the receiver, causing the other person to laugh. Ryan was lead guitarist in my band. He also happened to be one of my best friends and…a werewolf. So much for me escaping my past, right?

"Hey, love. Just wanted to see how your flight was? You didn't call to check in," he replied, sounding slightly angry. I forgot how protective he and my other two band mates were. They thought of me as a sister and have been there through out my entire short career.

"I'm sorry. Got a little sidetracked with settling in and all," I sighed. I heard a voice in the back shouting. "Is that Matty?"

"Yeah, the idiot wants to holler at you." I heard a shift in voices immediately.

"Bella! What the hell? Why haven't you called?!" a voice that sounded rather rough screamed at me.

"Calm down, Matt! It's only been two days." Matt is Ryan's cousin and another werewolf. He's a little more sensitive and emotionally in touch than Ryan. He was the one who got me to talk about my problems. I really believed he should have been a shrink, but he immediately shot me down by saying that the drums were where his heart belonged.

"Psh, yeah! Two very long ass days!"

I sighed. He really overreacted like a hugely concerned father. "Sorry, Dad!" I joked. I heard him chuckle and relax.

"So what's it like? Being home and all?"

I tensed a little. "The same but not, ya know?"

"Yeah, I think I do. Have you seen your friends?" My body went even more stiff, if that was even possible. I hadn't really discussed my past in depth with my band members. I pretty much left out my relationship with the Cullens, only saying that I had loved one and lost them all. They knew my heart had been conflicted when I left, but I never really liked talking about it. I barely even mentioned Jacob besides the fact that he was my best friend who I loved as well. It was too murky to make clear for the boys.

"Yeah," I sighed. I decided to change the subject. "Where's Jeremiah?"

Jeremiah was a completely different story. I don't even know where to start. First off, he's a vampire. And an extremely beautiful and talented one at that! Second, he gets along so well with werewolves that he is practically immune to the stench that they supposedly give off. Ryan and Matt hated him at first, but I made them get over their prejudice. Their will never be a singer/ guitarist/ pianist as amazing as Jere. He had a certain aura about him that made you feel very calm and serene. He was like another Jasper except without the empathic gift his immortality blessed him with. Jeremiah also had a very different personality than the wolves. He wasn't loud, outgoing, or playful. He took his eternity very seriously as if every minute were soon to end. Besides knowing that he was a vegetarian, he had at once been a mystery to me, but later became like my missing half. We weren't romantically involved what-so-ever, but we understood each other on a level that even the closest of identical twins could not. He was also incredibly clever, giving me food for my mind.

I heard the phone being handed over again. "Isabella?" a third voice asked. For some reason, he always preferred calling me that, and I allowed it.

"Hey, Jere! How is everything going? What are you guys doing in the same room?" I asked, suspiciously. Although I said that the three got along, it didn't mean that they were comfortable staying in the same room unless I was there or they were forced. I heard a guitar string being struck and my face lit up. "Are you guys rehearsing?"

Jeremiah chuckled. "Yes. It seems Matthew had an idea for a song and just had to test it. We wanted you to run though the lyrics."

"That's great! I'm tired of writing everything," I joked once more. "Can't wait to hear it!"

After speaking for a few more minutes to Jeremiah and promising them that I'd call again tomorrow, I stood up from the porch and strutted back to the car. If Jacob was going to stand me up, I was wasting my time. And I didn't have very much time to give.


	7. Chapter 7

JPOV

We had completely lost track of the scent! Sam and the others had met us and we had all split up to track down this thing who could be responsible for the killings going on for the last few days. All I could think about was the radiantly gorgeous Bella Swan who I was standing up to chase some sick ass bastard! I growled at this. The smell was so strong, but so entirely different than I was used to. It was vampiric, yet…wolf-like.

'_Jacob, we need to regroup!' Sam shouted through my mind. _

I immediately turned back around and charged back through the trees to find my pack. Just as we were all entering the clearing, we caught a sickly sweet whiff that blurred right pass our noses. I turned my head to see the surprised and dangerous faces of the Cullens. I snarled as I took my place next to Sam. His eyes were narrow, focusing on this coven of leeches standing in front of us.

'_What are you doing here?' I snapped._

The bronze haired one that I immediately recognized as Edward, Bella's bloodsucker, stepped forward. The thought of him with her made my blood boil and my stomach lurch. His eyes glared daggers at us before answering. "We are here for the same reason you are, Jacob Black."

'_Shoot! I forgot he could read minds!'_

He smirked at this, causing me to growl even louder. Sam stepped forward. _'We should let it go, Jake. Maybe they can stop the killings as well.' _His thoughts burned and stung my mind. I didn't want to let anything go. They had hurt Bella before and then came back as if nothing had ever happened, making her fall head over heels for them again! Like hell I'd just let it go!

"Leave her out of this," Edward responded coldly to my thoughts. "We are trying to stop the killings."

Carlisle stepped forward then. "We caught the scent, but it was still too unclear to decipher. Have you followed this trail?"

'_We have, but we were misguided,'_ _Sam informed. _Edward relayed his answer to Carlisle. Carlisle seemed to be greatly bothered by this and had a thoughtful expression on his face.

"Hmm, I have never heard of anything like this. It looks like we all have a problem to be concerned with," he murmured even though we could all hear him clearly.

'_We should open up the borders until we catch the monster responsible,' Sam instructed once again._

Edward nodded and then turned back to his father. I was starting to get irritated. I just wanted to leave already.

"That is the best option we have," Carlisle agreed. "We will be keeping ourselves alert." And with that they vanished in one great blur again. I turned back to Sam before we all headed back to the comforts of the reservation.

I just hoped that Bella wasn't too mad at me.

**A/N: I know my story is probably utterly confusing, which is why I'm drawing writer's block. I'm trying to add so much in, but I don't want it to be confusing. I've got emails saying that people were lost. So I deleted my last chapter and restarted his chapter as well as the previous. Hopefully they are a little more bearable. Please just hang on and let me figure out a smoother route to continue on and keep supporting me!! **

**P.S The Cullens and Bella will come face to face. Just give it time haha.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: Still own nothing!! Sorry! I wish!**

BPOV

I wasn't going to lay here and wallow at the fact that my best friend since almost forever stood me up. I grumbled and rolled off my bed, coming into hard contact with the floor. "Dammit!" I was still so undeniably klutzy even after five years. I thought I had outgrown hurting myself, but apparently the older I got, the more accident prone I became. Jeremiah, Ryan, and Matt can't always be here to save my ass, like _'he'_ use to. It almost hurt saying his name and for _what reason_? I left him this time due to my stupid fear of choosing between two amazing men. I was the one who gave up my chance at being Mrs. Cullen. And still after five unbelievably long years, I wasn't sure if I wanted to be that girl.

I stood up and walked into the bathroom. I picked up a brush and ran it through my long, dark hair. The person I seen staring back at me in the mirror was definitely different than the girl I had seen years before. I had never really noticed, nor did I care. I chalked it up to being my stylists fault, but it wasn't. I was a completely new person. I straightened out my wrinkled white shirt and tight, torn jeans. After being satisfied with my appearance, I walked downstairs, grabbed my car keys, and headed back out towards the rental truck. I was glad Charlie wasn't home yet. He would find some way to make my Jake situation a little more awkward. I drove to a nearby music store. It sure wasn't like the humongous music warehouses back in New York, but it definitely had some good selections. I walked in and smiled at the clerk who just stared at me with his mouth open. It was almost flattering if I hadn't seen a fly almost fly in there and choke him to death.

I walked down the isles, my eyes surveying the choices of CDs on the shelves along the red walls. I could tell someone else was standing a couple feet away from me. I saw out of the corner of my eye that they picked something up and observed it. There was something different. I could sense it. That's the thing about being human, but magically inclined. I could feel it and apparently the being next to me could as well. My brown eyes met the topaz eyes of the stranger near me. "Jasper?"

"Bella?" he asked, a shocked expression on his face that I had never seen before. I smiled and ran to him, pulling him into a hug. He tensed at first, but wrapped his arms around me. I pulled away to look him in the face.

"It's so good to see you, Jasper," I stated, the smile still there on my face. He smiled back and put the CD back down on the shelf before running a hand through his messy, honey colored hair.

"Bella, I can't believe it's you. You look… happy," he replied, his golden eyes roaming over my face. I laughed, a sound that came out a little dry.

"I wouldn't say happy, but I'm good," I answered now staring at the tiled floor beneath me. "How are you? The family?"

He sighed, an unnecessary action for a vampire. I realized that he was trying to block out my intoxicating scent. "I'm fine. The family is doing well. You should stop by."

It was my turn to take a deep breath. "I-I don't know. Don't think that would be entirely wise."

"Bella." His voice sounded heavy then and very serious, forcing me to gaze at him. "We miss you. We _all_ do." I had never seen Jasper look so worried, distraught, and pained. It surprised me and I was sure it showed up on my pale face.

"Are you sure?"

His expression lightened and I smiled. "Positive."

I inhaled and grinned back. "Ok. That would be great. I've missed you all so much."

He and I both headed out of the store after I waved to the store clerk who still looked like he was catching flies with his mouth. Jasper hopped onto his black Ducati and I told him that I'd follow him. The whole way there, I couldn't help but feel a pang in my chest like someone had punched a hole in my chest and was twisting my heart around. Jasper slowed as we came upon the trail and he parked his motorcycle in the wide garage. I stopped behind him and slowly descended from the truck. I was surprised when he was immediately at my side, almost in a comforting gesture. We walked up to the porch and the door was quickly swung open, revealing a female I hadn't seen in a few years.

"Bella!" she screamed.

"Alice!" Before I knew it, I was being squeezed to death by a small pixie.

"Oh my god, Bella! I've missed you so much. You don't understand. You are my best friend! I can't believe you're here. We have to go shopping!" She was talking so fast, I hardly caught any of it. Over my shoulder, I could see Jasper just laughing at his wife who wouldn't release me. I threw him a pleading look and he was finally able to pry her off.

"Alice, I've missed you too. So much! I was lost in the world of fashion without you," I replied, almost jokingly. Before I could ramble on, the breath was suddenly being squeezed out of me. "Emmett… the non-vampire… needs….AIR!" I gasped in between barely managed breaths.

His booming laughter filled the air as he set me back on my feet. "Sorry, Bella! It's been too long."

I managed to give him a small smile. "Its ok, Emmett. I've missed you too." He stepped back, revealing an expressionless Rosalie. I shifted uncomfortably under her gaze until she stepped forward and gave me a less painful hug. To say I was shocked beyond imagination would have been an understatement. "It's good to see you, Rose."

She released me and I turned to see my 'would-be' parents. Esme stepped forward and kissed both my cheeks before hugging me tightly. I could tell that if she were still technically alive, she would be balling her eyes out. Carlisle embraced me briefly. "Welcome back, Bella. You are always welcome here," he 

greeted. I could feel myself tremble at his kind, endearing words. How could they be so nice to me? I had repeated what they had done to me. I was a complete hypocrite!

As we headed in, I could tell Jasper had noticed my frantic emotions going all haywire. He threw me a worried glance. "Bella," he said so that his entire family could hear me. "We could never push you away on purpose. You don't have to be scared."

I took a seat on the small couch next to Alice and Jasper. Carlisle smiled across from me. "He's right, Bella. You were completely justified in your actions."

I felt my heart constrict at this. Their words meant more to me now than ever before. They had forgiven me.

And then, he was there.

**A/N: I hope this was ok? I felt like it sucked no pun intended a little when I wrote it. Review please! I'm starting to get writer's block dude!**


	9. Author's Note

**A/N: I UNDERSTAND THAT MY STORY IS INCREDIBLY UNREALISTIC; THEREFORE IF ANYONE THINKS THAT I SHOULD TOTALLY REWRITE THIS STORY…PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE LET ME KNOW! I PROMISE I WON'T BE HURT BY THAT DECISION. ALSO THERE ARE A FEW THINGS I WOULD LIKE TO TRY TO MAKE 'CLEAR':**

**--YES BELLA'S BAND IS QUITE AWKWARD BUT I MEAN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT TWILIGHT HERE…EVERYTHING IS A LITTLE SUPERNATURALLY UNBELIEVABLE.**

**--AS FAR AS WHAT BELLA IS, I'M KIND OF STUCK MYSELF. I WANTED HER TO BE SOMEWHAT OF A HEROIN HERSELF SO THAT SHE DOESN'T ALWAYS HAVE TO RELY ON EVERYONE TO TAKE CARE OF HER. BUT I DIDN'T WANT TO MAKE HER A VAMPIRE BECAUSE I'M NOT SURE IF SHE WILL CHOOSE JAKE OR EDWARD. I'M BETWEEN WITCH, HYBRID, AND HALF-VAMP SO THAT WAY SHE STILL HAS HER HUMAN ESSENCE IN HER. THEY ARE ALL COMPLETELY UNREAL AND SILLY I KNOW!**

**--I APPRECIATE ALL OF MY REVIEWERS. TO BE HONEST, WHEN I STARTED POSTING CHAPTERS, I DIDN'T THINK I'D GET THAT MANY REVIEWS. AND I'M PROBABLY GOING TO LOSE REVIEWERS ONCE I CHOOSE WHO SHE'LL END UP WITH STILL UNDECIDED!**

**--Anyways, that's it lol. Ciao!**

**XOXO, Lana**


	10. Chapter 9

He stood against the wall to my right in all his beautiful glory. I was sure that my heart was racing at 100 miles per hour. He looked slightly more….rough than the last time I saw him. His bronze hair was messy and fell loosely over his right eye. He wore a navy blue button up shirt that was slightly open, revealing that perfectly sculpted marble chest that I adored. Faded jeans hung loosely from his hips. His butterscotch eyes stared straight through me, disbelieving and hopeful. I stood, gaining the confidence to make the first move. "Edward," I whispered, walking to stand a few feet away from them with my arms open. He closed the distance between us and wrapped his cold, strong arms around my waist. His grip was tight and I was worried that he wouldn't let me go. I pulled away slightly to smile up at him, letting his beauty dazzle me. I realized then that his family was still in the room and I reluctantly returned to my seat next to a bouncing Alice. Edward followed, sitting on the arm of the couch beside me.

"Bella, you look AMAZING!" she squealed once more. I blushed only slightly at this.

"Don't give me any credit. That goes to Vivian and Pat. My stylist," I replied with a slight laugh. "So what have you all been up to over the last five years?"

"The same old things," Emmett answered, still grinning at me. "But we want to hear about the big star."

"Oh please. I am far from a big star. More like a tiny speck in the sky."

"Nonsense, Bella," Esme scolded. "We see you all the time on t.v and we all are a fan of your music." The whole family shook their heads in agreement. Edward smiled down at me.

"Umm alright. Well I moved to New York City immediately after leaving. I enrolled at Metropolitan College of N.Y. I was so loss and had pretty much nowhere to go until I seen an ad for a desperate roommate. I lived there for a year with my best friend Arianna. One night, she dragged me to a karaoke bar and forced me on stage to sing 'I love Rock and Roll'." I laughed at the memory. There were seven pairs of butterscotch colored eyes on me. I sighed. "That's where I met Levi Murandi. My agent. Next thing you know he was booking things for me left and right. He suggested I get a band and I suggested a friend who I had met in my literature class. It was soon me and him and then he pulled his cousin into it as well."

"Isn't there another member of your band?" Jasper questioned. I smiled and nodded. "Yes, my other half." I saw Edward stiffen at this out of the corner of my eye. "I met him one day while I had tried to escape a concert. It was the stupidest idea I had thought of since going to New York. I snuck out onto the balcony of my hotel the night of my performance and tried to climb down the fire escape. Being me I slipped and fell."

Everyone was intense and so focused on my story. I looked up at Edward who looked frantic with worry.

"Come on! Don't leave us hangin'!" Emmett shouted. I laughed at this before continuing.

"I thought I was going to die or break thousands of bones. Instead I fell into someone's arms." Once again, Edward stiffened. "That's where my third band member came in. He just happened to be there to see me trying to escape foolishly through my hotel window."

It was silent after awhile. They seemed to all be trying to soak my story in. It was a lot to consider. Even I couldn't believe that all of these turn of events had happened in only five measly years. "Bella?" Alice called. I turned to meet her topaz eyes.

"Yeah, Alice?"

"Why couldn't I see your future when you ran away?"

This was something I wasn't prepared for. I would have to come clean. I would have to spill a secret to it's very depth; a secret that my band members didn't know the full story of. The Cullens would never believe a lie if I did indeed try to tell them. They would see right through me like they always have. I was going to have to come clean.

"The same day that I left, I was attacked," I began. I stood up, catching them all off guard. I ignored their baffled reactions and pulled my shirt up to reveal a deep scar a few inches underneath my breast. They all gasped and then snarls rippled through the room. "It was definitely unexpected. In the sense of timing as well as my attacker."

"What do you mean, Bella?" Carlisle questioned, his eyes filled with worry and curiosity. It was so hard to try to explain something that even I was so unsure of. What would they think of me? Would they run? Would they see me as a possible threat?

"My attacker was neither vampire nor werewolf."

Once again silence filled the room. I risked a glance at all of their expressions. Esme and Alice's were ones of fear, Rosalie's was more of shock, while the boys seemed down right murderous. I realized why. They thought a human had been the one to hurt me. It would definitely be a more normal encounter than the usual threats. "There are some things in the world, a little more mythical and unreal even in comparison to vampires and werewolves," I continued in a low whisper even though I was sure they still heard me. Their eyes narrowed and I could see them all physically tense up.

I sighed. "His name was Damien. My plane had just arrived in New York and I was sitting at the terminal trying to figure out my next move. It was pretty late at night and there weren't that many people around. I decided to take a taxi to the nearest hotel. I was so stupid to sit on a bench in the darkest corner outside the airport to wait for a cab. He came up to me and asked if he could take a seat. Something inside of me went off like an alarm telling me that this--this _man _was not your usual airplane passengers just waiting for a ride. I knew it and I was too distraught to care!" I was so into my story as I tried to remember every element of that horrid night that I didn't notice the intense and pained eyes of the family I loved all on me. Edward's hand was rubbing circles on my back while he tried to study my face.

"He tried to make conversation. I hadn't even noticed when he pulled it out and before I--I could blink, I felt the sharpness of a blade below my heart! It twisted around a couple of times, causing the worse pain I had ever felt in my life. But I couldn't scream. I literally could not get a sound out. I was forced to look into these 

glowing red eyes as we were both surrounded by darkness. He told me that now I would know what darkness was made of. And that the biggest thing I needed to fear was… myself."

I couldn't help but feel Edward's trembling form or see Emmett and Jasper's frightening faces. I even looked on as Alice sobbed painful, tearless cries in Jasper's arms. They still cared for me; even after I had hurt them. "Now I know."

"You know what, dear?" Esme asked, her voice trembling.

"What it's like to have your soul be damned. To have no soul but still feel human nonetheless, knowing that you will NEVER be fully human ever again. To watch as your body gets waves of unexplained energy spasms and to have to control your emotions or else something extremely regretful could take place."

They all just stared at me, shocked. Their topaz eyes almost fell out of their sockets. I stood up and walked to the window, my eyes peering into the moon. I hadn't even noticed it was night now. "Bella?" someone once again called. I turned to see Jasper a few feet away from me.

I gave him a look that I hoped was reassuring before he asked his next question. "What are you?"

I surveyed all of them, seeing if they could handle all of this. I knew if I weren't so use to the supernatural and weirdos popping into my life, I would have freaked and passed out minutes ago. But these were century old vampires who had seen and heard it all. "Damien was a demon. I am not," I began. "It would seem fitting seeing as he was a heartless satanic outcast that had in someway wanted to sacrifice me or recreate me. But he hadn't gotten very far. Instead I inhabited some of his "gifts". Gifts some demons possess and gifts no one possesses."

"If you aren't a demon, then what should we call you?" Emmett asked. I shifted uncomfortably from one foot to another now.

"The most suitable term would be a witch," I whispered, my eyes casted downwards in shame. As I had expected, gasps went around the room like a chorus of singers right on cue. After a while, I decided to answer the first question they had asked me. The one leading into this story. "The reason you can't see my future Alice…is because I technically don't have one. My future is so unclear and invalid. And I hadn't planned on running away exactly. It came to me after I had decided to meet Angela and Ben in Seattle. I did exactly what your vision pictured. You can only see things that are going to happen right that moment. Things that are close to inevitable. Of course I could try to open up my future for a seer like yourself to see, but it's really freakin' hard! Especially when I'm so lost myself."

"What gifts do you possess?" Carlisle spoke. He looked so thoughtful as he paced around the room. I decided to show them some of my unusual talents. They were a little easier to show than explain. Most of them had limits that I was still curious about. I conjured fire in my hands and moved objects around the room with my mind. Those were the easier gifts. It then came down to weird gifts like sucking physical energy out of a room or manipulating another person's mind into doing what I wanted them too. The Cullen's were all surprisingly impressed. To be honest, up until today, I had hated my powers because they 

fault heavily dark and sinful. The only one I appreciated at times, was the force field. It made me feel safe when danger felt present. Like my invisible Edward or Jake. Other than that gift, I hardly ever used any of my active powers.

As much as I had wanted to be immortal for Edward, I savored what was left of my humanity now. That mostly had to do with the fact that immortality _was_ one of my gifts. I would forever look eighteen. However, unlike the Cullens, I had a choice to remove my immortality so that I could physically appear as if I had aged. I left this from them, not wanting to get into a whole other story.

It was late. I kissed and hugged them all goodbye, promising them of my return the next day. Edward had almost seemed like he was longing for me to stay, but I brushed it off.

He couldn't want me. Not after what I had done. Not after what I had become.

**A/N: Did you guys like this? Yay or Nay? I hope it's a little more informative now that you know what Bella is. It might still seem too much or too confusing. If it is, please let me know! Review please, for me!**

**I'm still topsy turvy on the whole Edward/Bella/Jacob thing!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: Once again, I own NOTHING. Sad, I know! I also do not own the songs mentioned in this chapter. I have written music before, but I'm not very confident in my ability so I wanted to save myself the embarrassment.**

**This chapter is slightly more humor than the drama and suspense and romance than I have been throwing at all of you. I thought you guys deserved a break! Haha enjoy!**

The next morning, I woke up to the distracting sound of my cell going off. I grumbled and rolled over to see who the hell would be calling me this morning. Jacob. Apparently, my best friend had been feeling quite the guilt since our missed play date. He had smothered me with messages last night that I just ignored. I was probably being overly sensitive about this situation, but hey, he hasn't seen me for five years! The least he can do is give me some one on one time!

I ignored the phone as it rang again and rolled out of bed, only to hit the wood of my floor. "Dammit!" I groaned, as I picked myself up and lazily stumbled to the bathroom. As I let the warm water from the showerhead rain down on me, I contemplated whether or not I should go back over to the Cullens. My doubts of them wanting me still were all flooding back into my mind. Were they serious when they said they wanted me to visit more? Or did they feel obligated because Jasper had already ran into me and pulled me to them out of common courtesy?

I wrapped a towel around me just as my phone rang from my room. I carefully made my way over to the table stand beside my bed to answer my cell. "Hello?"

"Bella?"

"Alice! Hey!"

"Hi! Get dressed." She sounded extremely hyper and too thrilled for my liking.

"What? Why?"

"Trust me, Bella! You don't want to know!" I heard Jasper's warning of advice in the background. Oh God! Was it that horrible?!

"Shh," I heard Alice reprimand her husband. "Bella, we're going to the mall in Seattle. The boys are coming with us so get dressed. We'll be there to pick you up soon." And with that command, my little pixie vampire friend hung up.

I sighed heavily before pulling a long-sleeved black top on and some torn jeans. I sided for some black converse for shoes and ran into the bathroom to apply a little mascara and eyeliner. I heard a knock on the door a few minutes later and with my hair hanging partially wet, I ran to answer it. Charlie had obviously left 

hours ago. The five Cullen teens were standing on my doorstep looking giddy to see me. That feeling of joy rose in the pit of my stomach and I felt at ease again. I was swept into hugs by Edward, Emmett, and Alice while Rosalie and Jasper smiled affectionately. This definitely washed away the dread I felt about them accepting the fact that I was partially a demon; a deadly one at that.

"Ready, Bella?!" Emmett asked.

"Sure, sure." I nodded and grabbed a white and gray checkered scarf, wrapping it around my neck. I grabbed my purse as I was practically pushed outside by a very eager Alice with the rest of the group following. "Where's the fire?" I mumbled. Of course they all heard and burst into hysterics. Something funny was going on here.

"What?" I asked, annoyed and impatient.

"Nothing. We just don't want to waste precious time when we could be shopping," Alice answered in a high pitched voice as Edward placed me in the passenger seat of his Volvo. Alice and Jasper climbed into the back and my glare bounced from the two males in the car. "Since when are you two so eager to shop?"

Edward just chuckled and shook his head. "Not eager to shop. Just eager to spend time with you." What a kiss ass! I focused on Jasper who just smiled sheepishly at me and shrugged. I growled and leaned back into the seat. "Don't frown, love," Edward commanded. My glare intensified causing him to grin. Wait! Had he just called me 'love'? As in he still loved me? I shook my head in disbelief. There's no way they could accept me. They were just putting up an act for my own good.

The drive to the Seattle mall took less time than it should have. Of course that was due to the beautiful God who walked beside me. As soon as we entered the mall, I got very nerve racking stares from people who obviously noticed me as Isabella Acklin, the new famous singer of the celebrity world. I tried to ignore the stares until children started coming up to get my autograph. I couldn't say no to the pouting and pleading of their little faces especially when it was actually kind of flattering. Teenagers started to swarm me in stores and in the food court. Thankfully, the Cullens had started acting as bodyguards. Edward, Emmett, and Jasper stood surrounding me with their arms folded over their chest. It would have been hilarious if they had given me room to breathe. Alice and Rosalie were leading the way through crowds telling people to leave me alone; although they actually seemed excited for some odd reason.

Then that's when I saw it. The reason for all the Cullen's 'eager beaver' faces. In the center of the mall, a large stage had been set up and a crowd was starting to form around it. Above, a sign saying Isabella Acklin in metallic letters was dangling for all of the people in the freaking mall to see! I turned murderous eyes to Alice. "What. Did. You. Do?!"

She just smiled innocently. "Nothing. It was just a little arrangement. Mostly for our benefit, but we were ok with sharing you with Seattle."

I turned to the rest of the Cullens who were all giving me hopeful looks. "Please, Bella," Alice whined. "Money will be made for the Lung Cancer Alliance of Washington. And since I read that you do a lot of charity wok, I figured…,"she trailed off and I sighed.

"Fine," I agreed. Wide grins spread across their beautiful faces. "But I don't have a band and…and," I stuttered. Emmett wrapped a strong, powerful arm around my shoulders and led me towards the stage.

"Don't worry, sis. We got you covered," he chuckled. I was officially scared.

I was onstage in front of half of Seattle. I wasn't exactly nervous. I had performed many times on stage in front of large crowds in huger spaces. However, I didn't feel confident when Jeremiah, Ryan, and Matt weren't standing behind me. Instead, I had Emmett on the drums, Jasper as lead guitarist, Alice with another guitar, Rosalie as back up singer, and Edward on the keyboard. I didn't want to voice my concerns about their experience, wanting to spare their feelings. I knew Edward was amazing, but I was concerned for his siblings. But I was used to performing with my band of five years. I guess I was going to have to do my best as the music began.

"HELLO, SEATTLE!" The crowd went wild. "I'm Isabella Acklin as many of you may know. And I only have one question for you." I smiled and looked behind me at the Cullens, who were all wearing encouraging, excited smiles on their radiant faces. "ARE YOU READY TO ROCK?!" I screamed into the microphone. Once again I was met by the screams and cheers of the audience. Alice told me I only had to sing three songs. It was like a mini concert. I chose the songs very carefully. I glanced at Jasper and Emmett and nodded as the beats blared over the raucous.

**This is How it Feels**

**You keep calling my phone non-stop  
Don't you know I won't pick it up  
You never leave a message  
Look how you've changed**

You got nothing to say, gettin' in the way  
Show up at my house  
Your gettin' so obsessive  
Like I have time for you

Wasn't it me you didn't want?  
Wasn't it me who was hanging on?  


**Now I'm done but before I go I want you to know ...**

This is how it feels  
When you wait for a call that never comes  
Are you waking up 'cause you miss someone?  
This is how it feels  
When the trust you had is broken,  
And your left to burn with your heart wide open

Oh Oh

You wanted me, not to tell me why  
Why and how you had the heart to fk up my whole life  
That's just so you

And now I've moved on by myself  
And maybe I won't forgive  
I'll just forget you lived  
And I hope it hurts

Wasn't it me you tried to blame?  
Wasn't it me you threw away?  
But before you go there's something you should know ...

This is how it feels  
When you wait for a call that never comes  
Are you waking up 'cause you miss someone?  
This is how it feels (oh oh)  
When the trust you had is broken,  
And your left to burn with your heart wide open

You taught me how to hate you  
And I was so in love  
When I tried to save us it was not enough  
So what the hell is different  
'cause now that I am gone  
You're crawling back to tell me  
I'm the one

Oh Oh  
This is how it feels  


**Oh Oh  
This is how it feels**

When you wait for a call that never comes  
Are you waking up 'cause you miss someone?  
This is how it feels (oh oh oh, oh oh oh)  
When the trust you had is broken,  
And your left to burn with your heart wide open

Do you only want me  
'cause you can't have me?  
Do you only want me  
'cause I'm gone?  
Do you only want me  
'cause you can't have me?  
Do you only want me  
'cause I'm gone?  
Do you only want me  
'cause you can't have me?  
Do you only want me  
'cause I'm gone?  
Do you only want me  
'cause you can't have me?  
Do you only want me  
'cause I'm gone?

Oh Oh

When the song ended, the crowd cheered wildly and I felt a satisfied smirk spread across my face. The Cullens were even more ecstatic. Alice was practically bouncing up and down. Emmett was trying to flex his muscles to impress the female crowd which just earned him a roll of the eyes from me and a glare from Rosalie. I turned back to the audience. "I want to introduce you all to the amazingly, talented group behind me," I told the crowd before pointing to each Cullen and introducing them individually. As one by one their names were called, the family of vampires waved or smiled at the crowd, except for Emmett who had to make a show. "This next song was written less than a year after I ran away from home and I hope you all enjoy it." The music began.

**Let Go**

**drink up, baby down  
mmm, are you in or are you out  
leave your things behind  
'cause it's all going off without you  
excuse me, too busy you're writing your tragedy  
these mishaps  
you bubble wrap  
when you've no idea what you're like**

so let go, jump in  
oh well, whatcha waiting for  
it's alright  
'cause there's beauty in the breakdown  
so let go, just get in  
oh, it's so amazing here  
it's alright  
'cause there's beauty in the breakdown

it gains the more it gives  
and then it rises with the fall  
so hand me that remote  
can't you see that all that stuff's a sideshow

such boundless pleasure  
we've no time for later now  
you can't await your own arrival  
you've 20 seconds to comply

so let go, jump in  
oh well, whatcha waiting for  
it's alright  
'cause there's beauty in the breakdown  
so let go, just get in  
oh, it's so amazing here  
it's alright  
'cause there's beauty in the breakdown

Once again, cheers exploded over the crowd as the song came to an end. Only one more song and I was out of here. "You guys are sweet, Seattle! And I've been informed by a little pixie," I started, earning chuckles from the family behind me as I referred to Alice. "…that this will all be going to charity which is the center of my priorities. So I want to thank you for allowing me to give back to you."

I turned and signaled for the music to begin.

**The Way I Am**

**If you were falling, then I would catch you.  
You need a light, I'd find a match.**

Cause I love the way you say good morning.  
And you take me the way I am.

If you are chilly, here take my sweater.  
Your head is aching, I'll make it better.

Cause I love the way you call me baby.  
And you take me the way I am.

I'd buy you Rogaine when you start losing all your hair.  
Sew on patches to all you tear.

Cause I love you more than I could ever promise.  
And you take me the way I am.  
You take me the way I am.  
You take me the way I am.

By the time the concert was over, my voice was spent. Edward pulled me to the food court and I didn't object, not that my voice would allow me. I had over done my vocals and I knew better. A girl with practice like me, should have known that my voice needed nourishment. After we ate, Alice practically dragged me in every store while the boys and Rose just followed.

"That was AWESOME, Bella!" Emmett said for the thousandth time. Apparently, the Cullens were on a serious hype about this concert stuff. They were even thinking about starting their own band! I laughed. I was glad that we could share something that we all loved. Edward's eyes kept glancing at me, sneaking peeks at every chance he got. When he had finally moved to holding my hand in his cold one, I didn't object. Truth be told, I wanted more than just hand holding. I wanted him to make me his. But I was pretty sure I didn't deserve a King like Edward Cullen.

When I arrived home, Charlie was already in bed. I sighed and made my way upstairs to my room with my shopping bags in tow. I opened my door, only to find a familiar figure standing in the center of the tiny room.

* * *

**A/N: I know you guys are probably thinking, what happened to the thing they were all supposed to be chasing. Don't worry, the danger is still about and in the next chapter we will dive back into the dramatics. I love you all! Please don't shoot the writer!**

**The song artists in this chapter were: the Veronicas, Frou Frou, and Ingrid Michaelson.**


	12. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: DO NOT OWN! Except for the three band members: Jeremiah, Matt, and Ryan.**

"Jake! What the hell?!" I hissed. I instantly regretted not returning his calls as soon as I looked into his eyes. They were full of worry, apology, and regret. He rushed over to me and pulled me into a tight hug.

"Bells! I'm so sorry. I know that I ruined my chances of spending quality time with you…but there was pack business….and I had to go! Please forgive me--wait! Whoa, Bells you smell like leech!" He released me and took a step back. His eyes suddenly turned dark and tremors erupted over his hard form.

"Yeah, I spent the day at the mall with Alice," I lied slightly. I couldn't tell him that I had spent the day with all of them, including Edward. It would break him and the one promise I made before arriving back in Forks was to quit hurting those who I have already caused enough damage to. My body could only take so much guilt. He seemed to calm down when I informed him that Alice was the only company I had today. Hopefully, he wouldn't find out about the mini concert in Seattle. "As I recall, a certain werewolf forgot that we had plans yesterday."

Jacob immediately took on the saddened guilt face. "I'm sorry, Bella. And if you don't want to see me anymore I'll--understand."

I snorted. "Don't be silly, Jake. I can't hold you responsible for one time. It's been five years! I'll jump at any chance to hang with you." That seemed to be the right thing to say. His face lit up and before I knew it, I was in another bone crushing hug.

"Jake…need…to…breathe!"

He set me carefully back on my feet and gave me an apologetic grin. I just laughed and pulled him onto the bed with me. I watched him out of the corner of my eye. Something seemed different about him. Radiant and glorious. He was almost glowing. He really had changed over my time away. He was a man instead of a boy; a mature adult. "Bella, I—I've been meaning to tell you something." He seemed really nervous all of a sudden, almost uncomfortable.

"What is it, Jake?"

"I--I've sort of--imprinted," the last part was a whisper, but I heard it nonetheless. I felt a slight pang in my demon heart, but it quickly vanished and I was surprised by the actual joy I felt towards this new news.

"That's great, Jake!" I exclaimed softly, not wanting to wake Charlie up. I kissed his cheek and ruffled his hair. The look he turned and gave me told me he was not at all happy with my reaction.

"You like the fact that I imprinted?!" he asked incredulously, jumping up from his seat beside me. Was I not supposed to? I admit that a few years ago it would have broken me to find that my best friend who I was in love with had found his sol mate, but surprisingly I was grateful that god could give him this.

"Yes of course, Jake! I'm happy when you are happy." This wolf was seriously expecting me to hate what he had done. Ok, and they say I'm crazy?!

"Bella, I--I love you! The fact that I've found my soul mate disgust me!" he admitted. I tensed and I could feel my eyes grow wide. He loved me? But why? After five years, I had expected him to move on. I certainly wasn't expecting him to wait for me even now that I was back. I still didn't know who I loved more; although, I was leaning more to Edward. Jacob's news just made it all the more clear. Would I have reacted the same if Edward had found his soul mate and that person wasn't me? Most likely not! I would have come home crying rivers of tears and falling into a depression once more. But for Jacob, I was truly, genuinely relieved, like half of me had been fixed.

I stood and moved to stand in front of my tall, warm friend. "Jake, I love you too. I love you so much that I'm happy that you can find someone to complete you. I'm happy that you will have someone who deserves you. But that person isn't me."

He honestly looked like he was in pain. What the hell? Why couldn't he get this? He took a step back. "Bella, you deserve someone that loves and cherishes everything you are. I wanted that person to be me. You are who I most desire."

Once again, I stood there frozen to the spot. Did I really mean so much to him that he would be willing to go against his werewolf instincts? Seriously?! I couldn't allow him to do that. Not for me. "Jake, honey, go," I whispered, my voice was too dry.

"What?" he asked in a low disbelieving voice. "Go," I urged. "Be with the one you were meant for." He stood there, staring at me as if I had three heads and four eyes. The pain was slowly flickering on his face. He needed this. I needed this. It was the real closure and boundary on our relationship. After several minutes passed, he walked to my window and leapt out without a backwards glance at me.

* * *

EPOV

After I told Alice and Jasper to take my car home, I had decided to wait for Bella in her room. Yet as I made my way around the outside of her house, I caught the stench of the werewolves that seemed to fan out of her room. The anger inside me began to boil and I wasn't sure how long I could contain it. It was obvious that the smell could only mean one thing; Jacob Black. What did he want with my beautiful angel? I stood at the edge of the trees and listened intently to the conversation.

I heard her beautiful laugh that was just as magnificent as her singing. "Bella, I—I've been meaning to tell you something." Jacob Black's voice could be made out. I listened into his thoughts. '_How do I tell the _

_woman I love that I have met my soul mate?'_ So the wolf had imprinted. Well, that was unexpected. At least my competition had eliminated itself.

"What is it, Jake?" the angel questioned softly.

"I--I've sort of--imprinted," the last part was a whisper, but my vampire ears picked up his hesitant answer.

"That's great, Jake!" Bella exclaimed in a low but excited voice. I was sure she did not want Charlie to awake. I watched as she kissed his cheek and ruffled his hair, the jealousy within me immediately rising with awaiting venom.

"You like the fact that I imprinted?!" he asked incredulously, jumping up so that he was now in my line of vision. '_She's not supposed to be happy for me! She's supposed to hate me for not claiming her as mine!'_ His last thought made me livid. She was never his. She was always mine. My Bella.

"Yes of course, Jake! I'm happy when you are happy." Her voice sounded genuine and calm, which made me smile. She wasn't in love with him, but she wanted him to find happiness. She truly was an angel.

"Bella, I--I love you! The fact that I've found my soul mate disgust me!" he admitted. I tensed and almost moved towards the window to strangle the mutt.

Bella soon came into view to stand in front of the large form that was Jacob. "Jake, I love you too. I love you so much that I'm happy that you can find someone to complete you. I'm happy that you will have someone who deserves you. But that person isn't me." My un-beating heart stung at her words, but I always knew she loved him deep down inside. He had healed her when I had left her broken. It was expected, but it still hurt.

Jacob Black looked as if my sweet angel had struck him. "Bella, you deserve someone that loves and cherishes everything you are. I wanted that person to be me. You are who I most desire."

Once again I tensed and watched Bella for a reaction. She stood there frozen before him. "Jake, honey, go," she whispered, her voice was breaking. I was completely blown away by her wishes for the dog to leave.

"What?" he asked in a low disbelieving voice.

"Go," she urged. "Be with the one you were meant for." He stood there, staring at the beauty before him. After several minutes passed, he walked to her open window and leapt out. He paused once on the ground and sniffed the air. I decided to make it easier and stepped out so that I was in his line of vision. He growled while I only glared.

"What are you doing here, leech?" he snarled. I stood in a defensive position.

"What do you think I'm here for, mutt?"

He knew and I could very clearly see the pain come across his face. "Stay away from her," he snapped before transforming and running off into the darkness of the trees.

I didn't hesitate as I gracefully swung myself into Bella's room.

**A/N: This chapter kind of sucked and felt a little cliche. But by now I think it's a little obvious who her heart belongs too, hopefully!**


	13. Chapter 12

After Jacob admitted his still burning love for me and I told him that his imprint was the one for him, I felt completely wrought with guilt and pain. Of course, those words came from deep within my heart and he deserved the truth, even if it killed both of us. I curled up on my bed, not caring that I was still wearing the clothes I had worn to the concert. It took a while for the tears to come, but they did and I sobbed myself into the thick pillows. I felt cold arms around me, pulling me into a hard chest. I didn't need to be Alice to tell who the person behind me was.

"Shh, everything will be fine, my love," his angelic voice soothed me. I turned around so that my tear stained eyes could look into his golden ones.

"How could you possibly use that term after all I caused you and your family?" I whispered, my voice hoarse from crying.

"Isabella, you will always be my love. My life. My everything. Your leaving never put an end to that. If anything it increased how much I need you in my life."

I cried even more at his words. How could this beautiful, sweet, perfect being want me or even love me? What had I done in life to deserve such a wonderful creature? Edward didn't seem to notice my doubts. He only kept holding me tightly to him and running his hands over my hair. "I love you, Edward," I whispered in the lowest of tones. I knew he would hear it nonetheless.

"And I love you, my Bella," he responded before humming my lullaby. It was only seconds before I drifted into a dreamless sleep.

I awoke bright and early in the morning, only to meet my angel's eyes. I smiled and he returned it with my favorite crooked grin. "Morning, my love."

I groaned and sat up. "Morning."

"Leaving?" he asked, his voice tinged with hurt. I laughed and shook my head.

"No, I need a human moment. Do you mind?"

He chuckled and shook his head. "Not at all. I will be here when you get back." He kissed me tenderly on the forehead before I grabbed some clothes from my closet and made my way to the bathroom. The warm rinse of the shower felt as if it had rid my exhausted body of the agony that I had experienced the night before. I climbed out and combed through my long hair before slipping on a new pair of jeans and a red and black striped sweater. My make up was basic and simple, very different than the usually heavy coated art that my concerts required. Edward was sitting in the rocking chair, looking like a Greek God in my imperfect room. He walked over to me as I entered.

"You look beautiful," he murmured into my ear, causing my heart to stop. "Breathe, love." He chuckled as I blushed and went in search of my black pumps. After slipping them off, we made our way downstairs. "Hungry?"

I nodded and he went to the cupboard to grab cooking items to fix my breakfast. "You don't have to. I'm a big girl," I joked. He rolled his eyes and continued on with his sweet deed.

"It's no problem. I miss doing these things for you."

"Hmmm, if you insist. I don't eat as much as a normal human should. Witch, demon thingy, remember?" I turned my glance down to my hands on the table. Still felt self-conscious saying what I was. It was slightly embarrassing and I was constantly waiting for him or any of the other Cullens to flee at any second with disgust in their eyes. A cold hand was under my chin, forcing me to look up into his face.

"You can tell me anything, Bella," he spoke softly. His intoxicating breath fanned out over my face, stunning me like always. I frowned after a while.

"My demonic soul doesn't frighten you or make you want to throw up?"

"Vampires can't throw up," he teased. I only winced as if he mocked me for my incompetence. Of course he noticed my reaction and pulled me onto his lap. "Bella you silly, beautiful girl! If anyone was supposed to be running, it was you all those years back when we met in Biology class. I would never run from you. No matter if you were a green alien with three eyes and four arms. You will always be special with the biggest heart that any person could ever dream of. You are MY Bella and I am yours for eternity," he paused as if thinking. I hadn't noticed that ears were streaming down my face. "Unless you don't want me," he finished, pain in his velvet voice.

Now it was my turn to look at him disbelievingly. I bursted into fits of giggles. "Edward you silly, perfect boy!" I responded, turning his words back to him. "I want you more than I have EVER wanted anything in my life. When I…I left, it was never because of you. It was for you. It wasn't fair to you when my heart was split. So I had to give you up. And every year that passed, I've only missed you more and more. I love you and you alone. I know that for sure now."

His smile widened and he looked positively ecstatic. He lifted me up in his strong arms and twirled me around the kitchen. I only giggled at his reaction and clung tighter to him. "You've just made me the happiest man in the world, you know that? Don't you, Bella?" he whispered into my ear.

"Now I do," I laughed and for once, it didn't feel forced. I was truly content in the arms of my lover, my soul mate.

* * *

We headed to the Cullen's large mansion, our hands always enclosed in the others. When we entered, his family congratulated us with cheers of our reconciliation. "Bout damn time!" Emmett boomed. I only giggled. I was not expecting all of them to react in such a way. Esme pulled me into a tight hug.

"You will always be apart of our family, Bella," she said in my ear. I was touched. My lack of a mother-daughter relationship had always kind of bugged me, made me feel slightly insignificant. But now I had a mother who wanted to spend time with me. And with that came a father, two brothers, two sisters, and a love.

"I'm glad that you guys want me," I said to all of them once I was settled in Edward's lap.

"Of course, Bella. Why wouldn't we?" Carlisle questioned, a warm tone in his wise voice.

"After everything I've put you guys through, it's been somewhat of a surprise to me."

"Bella, are you forgetting how much you went through when we left?" Alice asked, her voice full of hurt. I winced and I could tell Edward had done the same.

"No…of course not, but…," I began, but was cut off.

"You are still our sister," Alice said. A bunch of nods went around the room and I've never felt more love in my life. Just then my cell went off and I stood up to pull it out of my pocket. Checking the caller i.d, I flipped it open.

"Hey, Matty! What's up?"

"Bell! What happened to checking in every day, hmm?! That wasn't something to take lightly, young lady."

"Yeah, I'm sorry. Things have come up," I answered. I was aware that all of the Cullens were listening to our conversation; although, they tried to act completely oblivious.

"Yeah, about that….," Matt sighed. My demonic heart was pounding furiously into my chest now.

"What? What's wrong?" I asked in panic. If I wasn't aware of the Cullens listening in or watching before, I was most certain of it now. They were all staring at me with worrisome eyes. Edward was about to head over to me, but with one hand, I told him to stay right where he was.

"We think someone should be there with you. We talked it over and it only makes sense after you told us about your past in Forks," Mat continued.

I snorted, disbelievingly. My band members were sweet guys who were really protective of me. But at times, it pissed me off how they underestimated my ability to take care of myself. "You guys think I need protection?!" I could tell by a glancing at a few of the Cullens faces, they were a little offended by the belief that they couldn't protect me.

Matt immediately sensed my frustration. "Not protection, Bella! Company."

I thought it over for a minute and sighed. "Fine. Which one of you idiots will be joining me?" Maybe it would be nice to have a familiar New York face here to help me through all of the stress that was following me. Besides, I missed my New York boys. After Matt informed me of the plan, I hung up and turned to face the Cullens.

"Is everything alright, love?" Edward asked as I took a seat beside him on the couch. I smiled and nodded.

"So, Bella," Jasper spoke with a small hint of curiosity. "…you never told us why your stage name Isabella Acklin?"

"Oh um, it's my band member who happens to be my best friend's last name. We say we're brother and sister. In fact, he'll be staying with me for the rest of my trip here," I informed. There was a mixture of unfamiliar expressions on their faces at the mention of one of the boys staying with me. Curiosity…worry…excitement…jealousy.

"You mean will get to meet one of your band mates?" Alice asked, obviously the only one thrilled. I smiled and nodded.

"Yep. He's flying in tomorrow."

"Great, dear. Why don't you both come over so that we can all get acquainted," Esme suggested.

"Sure, Esme. That would be great." I didn't want to bring up that none of friends/ family were technically human. It would only being up more questions and disapproving remarks from the vampires I loved most. So I kept quiet about that secret.

"Bella, do you mind if I ask you a favor?" Carlisle finally spoke. I heard a low rumble from Edward, which only made me more suspicious of what his father would need from me.

"Of course, Carlisle. You all can ask me anything," I assured him.

"Well, we've come across quite a suspicious creature in Forks. A monster per se."

"You mean the thing that's being murdering people?"

"Yes. Neither we nor the wolves can put a specific title to the scent. It might not be a vampire or a wolf," he informed me, his expression was full of thought. For the first time in a long time, I saw fear on all of their glorious faces. "Do you think that you can somehow take closer look at this scent?"

Edward growled. "No. Most certainly not!"

I ignored him. "Well, it's a little different for me. I can't tell by "sniffing", but by energy. Demonic energy." They all continued staring at me with wide, confused eyes. I laughed an d continued. "If I follow the trail, I can sense an evil prescence by the negative aura. It gives off a certain vibe or wave in the area that the evil was last in."

"Like spidey senses?" Emmett questioned. I laughed even more while the rest just rolled their eyes.

"Yes, Emmett. Sort of like spidey senses. Except for witchy senses, so to speak."

"Dude, that is so awesome!" Emmett exclaimed. Wow! They really were taking this lighter than expected. I was a freak among freaks and they seemed to think it was amazing. Better yet, they accepted it.

They accepted me.

* * *

**Authors Note: Ok…so I HATE this chapter. It was so much of a disappointment. I had another bit of writer's block and couldn't come up with anything to write. Let me know if you want me to re-write this chapter. It was sort of stupid lol! SORRY!!**


	14. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: Here's another chapter. Sorry if it seems a little lame!**

I came home after the family meeting with the Cullens. Charlie was already sleeping and the house was eerily silent. As I made my way upstairs, I couldn't help the vibe I got. The atmosphere felt dark, but I wasn't positive that the energy I was sensing was entirely evil. My room felt colder than before and chalky. I stood, unmoving, for quite sometime, trying my best to figure out who possibly could have brought this aura about. After a while, it was clear that I would not be getting an answer tonight. I climbed into bed and quickly dozed off.

"_Isabella….Isabella!" the deep voice called. I kept running, deeper and deeper into the dark. No light was evident, but I couldn't give up. Not when the creature was so close behind. "Isabella!"_

_Running…running…faster…faster. The night was foggy and my destination was unclear. I had to escape. I had to remain alive. For Edward. For the Cullens. For Charlie. For Renee. I made it into a night covered clearing, panting hard but never giving in. I felt it before I made it across. Two arms held me in a vice grip and all I saw were two red eyes in the dark._

I jumped upright in my bed, my breathing unsteady and my heart pounding against my chest. I sighed and wiped the dripping sweat from my forehead. "It was just a nightmare," I tried to convince myself. "Just a nightmare." I slowly made my way to the bathroom. I craved the soothing water of the shower that would wash away the sweat and knots from the horrid, realistic nightmare my mind endured. The house was empty when I was through getting ready. I entered the kitchen, surprisingly un-hungry. My body somehow felt weaker, colder, emptier. I ran a hand through my hair and grabbed my keys and purse before heading out. The cool air hit me like a tidal wave, but it felt amazingly soothing. The drive to Seattle was bound to take my worrisome mind off of everything and I was sure I'd feel rejuvenated in no time.

* * *

I waited at the airport as the passengers got off the plane. In the meanwhile, I had called and informed Charlie that a close friend of mine would be staying with me until I headed back home. He was surprisingly accepting of the news; possibly still joyful of me still staying with him in little rainy Forks. I was a little impatient to see my friend so the constant tapping of my foot was just another habit. My eyes were surveying each person in the crowd of travelers. Until finally my eyes rested on him. His chestnut brown hair was messy, but because it was him, it managed to look perfect either way. He wore a black button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and a loose pair of dark jeans. A black duffel bag was in his hand and a guitar was swung over his shoulder. I could tell that every girl in the crowded airport had stopped and stared with pure appreciation of his form. When he caught my eye, a smile spread across his face as he hurriedly walked over to me. "Isabella," he greeted.

"Jeremiah," my voice was pitched with excitement. We both laughed and pulled each other into a tight hug.

"Ah, my little sister. It is good to see you," he sighed.

"Same for you, big brother," I said, finally releasing him. We made our way to the rental car outside, chatting about meaningless things such as the weather and how different everything was from N.Y. The drive seemed to take less time now that Jeremiah was here. He got me to tell him about the Cullens and the La Push wolves, which he already knew the basics of. "Esme wants us to come over later. Is that ok?" Although I was very independent, I always felt as if I needed Jeremiah's approval.

"Of course. That sounds like a wonderful idea." He gave me a warm smile before glancing out the window. "There sure are a lot of trees, aren't there?"

I giggled. "Yep. Makes for an excellent place to get lost." He just chuckled. I felt now would be the best time to come clean about a few things. I had a hard time keeping secrets from Jeremiah. He always knew what was on my mind or what bothered me just by reading my facial expressions. "Jere?"

"Yes?" He turned to me with one eyebrow raised.

I hesitated, nibbling on my bottom lip. "I haven't told the Cullens that you were a vampire."

"Oh. Why not?"

"Hmmm, well I left Forks to get away from the rivalry between Edward, a vampire, and Jacob, a werewolf. I didn't want it to seem like I was being a hypocrite. But now the Cullens have forgiven and accepted me. So I really want them to meet you. You're important to me."

"Isabella, you did what was right for them. You made the ultimate sacrifice. Your heart for theirs. You are no hypocrite. I will not hear of it. And you are important to me as well. We will meet and I'm sure everything will be just fine." His voice was very soothing and I instantly felt the shame evaporate. I smiled, but there was one more thing that had been on my mind. I pulled up to the house and put the car in park as Jeremiah took in his new surroundings.

"Jere?"

He turned and smiled. "Yes?"

"There has been a series of mysterious murders going on in Forks. The Cullens have been trying to identify the scent that's being left behind, but they're drawing a blank. Carlisle has asked me to give my demon senses a try. I'll probably follow the trail tonight. I just... thought you should know." Truth was, sometimes I couldn't control myself when I went full witch mode. He however, knew how to stop me.

He had a very thoughtful expression on his face, as if he was contemplating this new piece of information. "I'll go with you. Maybe I can distinguish this scent too."

I smiled. "Great. Now come on and I'll show you where you'll be staying."

After Jeremiah was settled on his bed that was just a show for Charlie, we walked downstairs to the living room and continued our talk. Unlike my werewolf band mates, Jeremiah wasn't one for modern day technology. He had a cell phone which he only used for emergency purposes and an IPOD that I forced him to have so that he could enjoy his favorite songs. He hardly ever watched television. So when I suggested it, he turned away in disgust. Instead, he grabbed his guitar and began playing some random song he had though up in his deep mind. I left him to his music as I ran upstairs to get dressed for the Cullens. I decided on a fitted gray turtleneck dress that went above my knees 

along with a black scarf around my neck. I slipped on my black zip- up boots and left my hair long and wavy. My make up was heavier than before, but still looked sophisticated rather than trashy.

Downstairs Jeremiah was waiting and as I took him in, I could tell he had changed as well. His style was all still the same however. His pants were black denim and his shirt was a beautiful forest green that once again had the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. "Well, don't you look dashing," I teased.

He grinned. "And I must say, milady, you look quite appealing yourself." We laughed and headed out to the car. For some reason, I felt like something was flying in the pit of my stomach. I was as nervous as a girl bringing her boyfriend home to meet her family for the first time; which in our story was completely not the case. Jeremiah was my family and I simply wanted to introduce him to my other family.

We made it their in less than ten minutes and I could see Jeremiah surveying the house with his golden eyes. He nodded in approval as I grabbed his arm and led him up the porch. Before I could even knock, the door swung open to reveal my favorite little pixie vampire. "Bella!" she squealed, pulling me into her little arms.

"Hey, Alice," I managed to choke out. She grinned and pulled away to look at my guest. "Alice, this is…,"

"Jeremiah," she cut me off. Jeremiah and I exchanged startled glances. " Don't worry, Bella. I already told everyone about your vampire friend."

Of course! I should have known. Nothing gets pass Alice. "Well that saves me from a whole lot," I mumbled as she led us into the living room where all the other Cullens were seated. I stood close to Jeremiah as I entered.

"Hello, Bella, dear," Esme greeted, walking over to kiss my cheek and embrace me.

I smiled. "Hey, Esme. Thanks for having us." I turned to Jeremiah who met my eyes with an amused expression. I was sure he was surprised about the open affection I shared with the Cullens. I would have to explain it later. "This is Jeremiah Acklin."

"Nice to meet you, dear," Esme greeted with her warm voice.

"It's a pleasure," he greeted, owing his head while his smile stayed in place. Carlisle came up next.

"Hello, Jeremiah. You are welcomed and among friends here."

Jeremiah's smile widened at the kind man before him. Everyone said their greetings with a few threatening tones from the ever so protective Jasper and Emmett. And then it was time to introduce him to Edward. I pulled him over to my love who stood and gave me a chaste kiss before turning to the man. It was almost as if they were both were observing the other very closely, waiting for something to strike them. "Edward, this is Jeremiah. Jeremiah, this is Edward Cullen."

Jeremiah had heard my stories of the love of my existence numerous times. I couldn't say that he was particularly fond of Edward, but being the gentleman he always was, he would never bring his distaste into the light. They both nodded to the other, seeming to put whatever glaring contest they were having aside. I just rolled my eyes and took a seat next to Esme on the smaller couch. Edward walked over and joined me while Jeremiah took a seat in the open armchair.

"So, Jeremiah, I see you are a vegetarian like the rest of us," Carlisle said with observant eyes.

Jeremiah didn't seem surprised y the question. I had told him about how the Cullens kept to their diet with pride. He just smirked and nodded. "Indeed. Never had much of an apetite for human ingredients," he joked lightly. I stifled a giggle as the rest of the vampires stared at my brother with curiosity.

"And you and Bella are…?" Carlisle questioned, trailing off. Jeremiah's golden eyes met my brown ones and we grinned.

"Isabella is the closest thing I have to a family. She is of high importance to my vampire existence." I was moved by his words that never seemed to fail in making me feel at ease. I had a real brother in this man.

"How did you guys meet?" Alice asked. He looked to me and I nodded.

"Well, I was walking one night and I saw this one," he paused, pointing at me with a chuckle. "…trying to escape from her hotel window. Just as she slipped, I caught her. I tried to get her to tell me why exactly she was trying to escape from her own concert. Turns out she was having an anxiety attack. I told her I'd hang with her and try to get her to relax for her performance. She did and after she asked if I played any instruments. I said I played piano, guitar, as well as sing. She set up an interview for me with her band and immediately I became apart of the group. By then she was just going by the stage name Isabella."

"He's never had the urge for human blood that other vampires have had. We became best friends. If anyone knows about my demon condition, it's him. He's been there throughout all of my experiences with that part of me. He's even tried helping me look for answers," I continued for him. He winked at me which I returned with a smile.

"You've never had the urge to drink her blood?" Emmett questioned with shock. "I mean, knowing how clumsy Bella is, there's had to be sometime!"

I glared at my larger Cullen brother. "Thanks, Emmett," I spat. He only smirked at me. Jeremiah chuckled.

"Actually she's gained some grace in her movements, being a performer and all. But there was one incident…."he answered, wincing. The Cullens expressions all hardened and everyone tensed.

I sighed. "It wasn't a big deal." They all turned to me with wide eyes. "I was being a reckless, rebellious teenager with heavy angst and ran away into the forest. I hated that I was a demon and I hated the spasms I always got from my gifts. So I ran. I tripped on a branch and hit my head on a rock. I blacked out just as I saw Jeremiah hovering over me, his eyes black."

"How did you cope with the hunger?" Carlisle asked disbelievingly. They were all concerned and very intrigued.

"I froze, fighting the animal inside. I've had almost two hundred years of practice. I saw she was losing a lot of blood from the gash in her head. That was enough to get me to take her to the hospital."

"He saved my life," I whispered. Edward relaxed and pulled me close to him while placing a kiss on the top of my head.

"Your other band members don't notice the two of you are different?" asked Jasper, skeptically. Jeremiah and I exchanged a glance. I guess we would have to talk about Matthew and Ryan Evercrest sooner or later.

"They're Children of the Moon. Werewolves, so to speak," Jeremiah informed. Once again, tension ran high as they absorbed more shocking information about my band members.

"How in the HELL do you work with that?!" Emmett exclaimed quite loudly. We all flinched at his tone. I giggled after a while and they all turned to me as if I was crazy.

"They're only wolves during a full moon. It's quite easy to overlook. Besides, I met Ryan in college and we were already close friends. After my run-in with vampires, werewolves, and demons…I expect anything! Being human is so last season." I giggled again which Jeremiah rolled his eyes at.

"So you have werewolves and a vampire in your band?" Edward asked, his brows furrowed in bewilderment. I kissed his cheek and nodded.

"But don't you guys fight?" Alice asked Jeremiah. He pursed his lips as if mulling that over in his head. He finally just shook his head.

"Isabella is quite a peacemaker. And after a while, the scent vanishes and you can ignore it entirely."

* * *

The rest of the night went fairly well. Jeremiah got along with all of the Cullens, even Edward who was still wary around him. Yet since he saw how much Jeremiah has helped me when he could not, he made an effort to befriend him. Carlisle agreed that Jeremiah should follow the unknown scented trail with me. So later that same night, we headed out with Edward, Alice, Jasper, and Emmett. As soon as we hit the trail, I could feel the chalky energy pulsing through my veins. The aura was more negative than ever and felt very haunted with darkness. It was the same exact vibe that I had felt hit me in my room. I knew this energy. I could recognize it in any area. This was no wolf or vampire.

* * *

**A/N: Did any of this make sense?! Because I don't even know if it made sense to me haha!**


	15. Chapter 14

That energy! That damn negative energy! I DID know it!! I started to feel this knot tightening in the pit of my stomach. I felt sick, nauseous, and dizzy. It was dark and grimy. Slowly, I slipped into blackness.

* * *

"_Isabella…Isabella!" the monstrous voice called in the dark once more. I couldn't move. Trapped. So trapped. The red eye creature was holding me, suffocating what little strength I had. "Why is it that you run from me, lovely Isabella?"_

"_Please," I begged, my voice was low and hoarse. "Please."_

"_It's time to end what once had began long ago," the voice continued, ignoring my cries as a wave of fresh pain struck my heart like a bullet._

My eyes took their time to flutter open and in seconds I saw the worried eyes of the Cullens and Jeremiah. Jeremiah was sitting beside my left side on the bed, his ice cold hand holding mine. Edward was sitting on my right with a pained expression and his lips pressed tightly together. His hand went to stroke my cheek as I took in my surroundings. We were back at the Cullen's mansion. "Bella, are you alright, love?" Edward asked softly. I nodded and tried to sit up against the pillows. Jeremiah helped me settle while giving my hand a squeeze.

"What did you see?" he questioned with a small, knowing smile. I gave him a blank stare while the Cullens all looked confused and a little startle.

"How did you….,"

"Know?" he finished. "Oh come on, Isabella! I've been around you for a few years while you have had your nightmares. I know your symptoms. Sweat, mumbling, tensed muscles, funny face."

I glowered at him and then let out a heavy sigh. "I know that energy, Jere. I felt it from the trail you guys led me to," I informed, shifting my eyes to glance at all the Cullens. "He will stop at nothing to finish the job he has already started."

"Who?" Jasper asked, once again with the startled expressions.

"Damien," Jeremiah answered for me grimly. I had a hard time saying the name I feared in my sleep. The Cullens seemed to be trying to recall the information I told them about the man who created the witch I am now. Edward's face contorted from pain, to anger, to full out rage. My hand went out to stroke his face and he turned softer eyes to me. He held me close and kissed my forehead.

"What does he want?" Emmett growled, his muscles flexing involuntarily. I sighed and glanced at Jeremiah whose eyes met mine. He immediately knew the answer neither of us wanted to believe.

"Me," I whispered. Edward and his family stiffened as his arms tightened around me. A low growl escaped his throat. Jeremiah stood up and faced away, his expression was full of contemplation. I slowly stood up as well after removing the blanket somewhat had thrown over me and hesitantly pulling away from my love. I walked over to Jeremiah.

"What do we do now?" I croaked. He turned with a small, comforting smile and ruffled my hair with his hand.

"We stick together. We have to find out why he wants you. It can't be just to finish the job. He believes he has already tainted your soul. So it must be for a personal reason."

I nodded, brows furrowing as I too mulled that statement over in my head. "Wait," I whispered. Everyone's thoughtful eyes shot to me. "Is there anyway we can look at the victims? I mean, why would he kill people if he already knew I was here? And not just any people, complete strangers. We demons don't need to kill to survive. He's hinting at something." I tapped my chin as I went into full thinking mode.

"He could quite possibly be trying to lure you in," Carlisle offered as an answer.

"Hmmm, I suppose. But why put so much effort. He could have easily….," I trailed off and shuddered at my next thought. "…held someone I loved hostage." I completed the sentence with a regretful and saddened tone to my voice.

"Maybe it's more than that. Maybe he's realizing the threat and is trying to build up," Jeremiah said.

"Like an energy increase. Trying to gain strength by sucking the life out of others," I finished off of his thought. He nodded as we both stared at the other.

"He's realizing you are more of a threat and won't come willingly. He needs the power to take you by force," he stated. I thought this over and grimaced. The Cullens were yet again tense and I swore I heard a growl from Edward and Emmett. My hands went up in the air with a groan.

"Guess my trip is over," I mumbled.

"What?!" Alice asked, with wide frightened eyes. She danced over to me. "Bella, you can't go!"

"You're leaving?!" Edward asked loudly, hurt in his beautiful topaz eyes that matched those of his sister.

"What about Damien?" Carlisle questioned, assuming that I was just going to ignore him.

"I'm leaving so that I can protect you guys. And the wolves. And Forks. I need to lead him away from here," I stated calmly. My eyes went to Jeremiah. He nodded.

"I guess I'll pack up," he replied and left the room. His voice wasn't as shocked as the Cullens. It held a startled yet understanding tone.

"Bella, let us help you!" Edward pleaded, grabbing my face in both of his hands. "We WILL help you."

"He is right, Bella," Carlisle spoke. "You are family. Family does not let one fight battles on their own."

"Please, Carlisle," I murmured softly. "If Damien realizes how much I love you guys…my family…he'll stop at nothing to harm you all. He knows that if he does, he'll have me. And then we are all screwed. I can't do that to my mother my eyes shift to Esme, my father my eyes shift to Carlisle, my brothers my eyes shift to Jasper and Emmett, my sisters my eyes shift to Alice and Rosalie, and my heart my eyes meet the face of the man still holding me. My Edward. I just can't."

"Bella, we can handle ourselves. We can protect each other. And I can protect you," Edward said firmly.

"We are stronger together than individually," Jasper spoke. I was reluctant as they studied my face for the answer. I knew they would risk themselves to protect me no matter what I said or did. I sighed.

"Fine," I grumbled and crossed my arms over my chest. They all smiled and laughed. "Jeremiah!" I called loudly, knowing he would hear me without the high level of my voice. He was never too far. He appeared beside me in seconds with a smirk on his face.

"You rang, my dear sister?" he teased. I smiled. "We are staying I take it?"

"Yeah. You know you are in danger as well, right?"

Jeremiah scoffed lightly and rolled his eyes. "You and I have been together for a few years and have faced many unique encounters. This one will just be another step." He threw an arm around my shoulders and led me out of the room with the Cullens right behind us.

* * *

**A/N: This felt a little…corny for lack of better term. But this is going to get heavier and probably more confusing as they come face to face with Damien. So feel free to tell me if I lost you guys at some points. **


	16. Chapter 15

"Oh my god! I can't believe we are doing this," I squealed in a hushed tone, not wanting to be caught.

"Why not? It was your idea to get the records," Jeremiah reminded me while he dug in the metal filing cabinet.

"Not this way!" I hissed angrily. My hands were on my hip as I paced over to the window to keep an eye out.

Jeremiah turned to me with a raised eyebrow. "And how exactly did you think we could go about attaining said files, Isabella? Ask your father?" He spoke the last of his statements with a snort as if the mere thought was the most amusing thing. Which now that I considered it, it definitely was plain stupid!

"I know…I know," I muttered. "He would have thought I was part of some crime. Maybe he would think I had something to do with it and that I kept knives and hidden body parts under my bed." I laughed at the image that flashed through my mind of Charlie searching my items to see if I had committed any homicide missions. Jeremiah just rolled his eyes and continued to rip open file drawers, searching for our desired reports. "But still, I'm the Chief of Police's daughter, for crying out loud!"

"Relax! Have faith, dear sister. And get your pretty little ass over here and help me!"

I huffed at his snappy order, but didn't bother arguing as I helped search for the murder victim files. After several more minutes, I saw the label we had been searching for in large, bold black letters. "Found it!" I shouted, low enough that a normal human being would not pick up on my words. Jeremiah rushed over to my side with an excited smile before tensing. "What?!" I hissed.

"Someone's coming," he murmured. He grabbed my hand as I clutched the files in one arm. He swung me on his back and headed for the open window. Before I knew it, we were falling only to land gracefully on the ground beneath us. I closed my eyes as Jeremiah took off into a run, the air brushing around us. The flying sensation stopped and we were finally standing outside of the Cullen's mansion.

Before I could lift my weak hands to knock, it swung open revealing a giddy looking Emmett. He beamed down at me while bouncing from foot to foot. "Uh, hey Emmett," I greeted with a suspicious tone in my voice.

"Hey, Bells! Break into any police stations lately?" he asked with a wink. Alice! My sneaky psychic sister! I should have known they would see my little act of bad behavior. I groaned.

"Emmett…"

"I mean MAN! I knew you changed, but I didn't know you became such a bad ass!"

I couldn't help but laugh at my large brother. "You'd be surprised," I mumbled, although I was sure he heard for he bursted into booming laughter as he moved to let me and Jeremiah in. The rest of the Cullens were already situated in their front room. Edward quickly walked over to me and pulled me tightly into his cold embrace. I pressed my lips to his chilling, soft ones.

"That was reckless, my love," he reprimanded. His scowl overcame his beautiful face and he turned to Jeremiah. I was starting to believe that my love and my brother weren't exactly on friendly terms like I had thought or hoped.

"There was no other way. Besides, Isabella agreed," Jeremiah simply stated before taking a seat on the couch next to Esme. A low growl erupted from Edward's hard chest. I glared at Jeremiah and placed a hand on Edward's arm to calm him. He sighed and pulled me to sit on his lap on the other couch beside Alice and Jasper who both smiled at me.

Carlisle glanced between Jeremiah and myself. "Alice has informed us that you have indeed found the murder victim reports." I nodded and placed the manila folder I had been clutching in my hand on the center table. Carlisle moved to the table as we all inched forward to see what the police had discovered. I slid off Edward's lap to the floor so that I could lean on the table and get a good peak. I was hesitant and nervous though. Damien was a cruel being and I expected the absolute worst. Jasper, sensing my distress, sent a wave of soothing and ease around the room. I turned to smile at him which he returned gently. Carlisle opened the folder and a collection of gasp went around the room.

The pictures of the abused and dislocated victims were atrocious. They were enough to make me nauseous. I turned and buried my face in Edward's awaiting chest. His arms wound tightly around me, holding me close with the need to protect.

"What the hell kind of sick bastard does this?" Emmett questioned, the pure distaste leaking from his voice.

"Just one sick bastard," Jeremiah spoke coldly. "Damien."

I pulled away from Edward and glanced back at the picture of a woman with bruises and scratches covering her entire body. She was missing her right arm and her left leg. It was such a realistic vision that I could feel pain coming from my body as if I had lost my own anatomy parts. Edward kept his cold arms around my waist as Carlisle continued to flip through the photos.

"Well, this is a new creature we are dealing with. One with a certain darkness that he has not limited to just the abnormal races, but the human race as well. He quite possibly will be our biggest threat yet," Carlisle said with worry. He was stuck, lost in a world he was so familiar with just seconds before. I wanted to assure my "vampire family" that we would succeed in the end, even if I was the least sure of them all. I caught Jeremiah's eye and we both held each other's gaze in a silent conversation until I felt a hand squeeze mine. I peered up into Edward's green eyes that held many emotions beneath the depth. Love. Lust. Frustration. Jealousy?

"Jeremiah and myself. We know what to do," I stated meekly to the Cullens who had been observing our silent interaction. "But sadly, the fight with Damien…can only be between ME and DAMIEN."

"What?! You want us to let you fight and evil, hell-bent demon who is set on killing you by yourself?! Absolutely not! No way!"

"I said fight him by myself. I didn't say you guys couldn't secretly help from the sidelines."

"Still…," Edward hesitated, trailing off. My eyes flickered over the other Cullens. They looked very worried and hesitant as well. Then I met Jere's gaze; the one encouraging face in the room.

"Nope," Emmett finally said. "You can't fight one dude who could be more powerful than just seven vamps taking it on."

"That's where you are wrong," Jeremiah said softly, eyes casted downwards now. "Bella is a demon, a witch, and a human. Her soul enables her to think more clearly than any vampire or full-fledged demon. She doesn't yearn for blood or the need to kill. She has power beyond a mere vampire gift. Besides, she has me." He added the last part with a smug grin, causing my own grin to widen.

"And exactly what do you have to offer?" Jasper questioned coldly.

"He's my personal trainer," I answered with a small laugh. They wanted to know what they had missed in five years, I was going to show them. And I was going to demonstrate that using my main target. Damien.

* * *

"How come I can't see anything?" Alice whined. I laughed and placed a hand on my best friend's shoulder.

"I told you Alice. Your gift has no control over demons. Just like werewolves." She sighed at my answer while going back to anxiously tapping her foot. Edward stood very close to my right side with a protective and possessive hand on my lower back. His eyes were scanning the forest, very much like mine. The Cullens, Jeremiah, and I decided to split into groups of threes. Alice, Edward, and I ventured the deepest into the woods. I was in the lead, using all my energy to magnetically force me upon Damien. I needed to put an end to his antics once and for all. Of course Edward was never too far; grasping my hand or pressing his cool lips sweetly to my temple. Alice was blind and that totally made her nervous as well as anxious. I was suddenly glad that Jasper had not joined this group. Two nervous, anxious vamps would be too much to bear.

Then at that moment, I heard it. The crunch of a twig, signaling someone's arrival. I caught a thick scent as the wind was suddenly shifted in our direction. Dark energy was pulsating through the atmosphere. I swiveled around on my heels, my eyes finally landing on the source of undying hatred.

**Authors Note: I'm sorry that this story is going down the drain and I am sorry that it took me awhile to update. Please forgive me and I will try to continue this story until the end. Even if it is strarting to sound patheticly stupid.**

**-lana**


	17. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: I OWN NOTHING...EXCEPT FOR DAMIEN AND JEREMIAH AND THE REST OF THE BAND MEMBERS! ALL CREDIT GOES TO THE INCREDIBLY TALENTED STEPHENIE MEYER.**

* * *

Damien sauntered into the sunlight so that he was directly in our clear line of vision. I felt Alice and Edward tense behind me as I let my eyes take in the monster that had corrupted my soul. He wasn't exactly the image that my nightmares had concocted. In fact, he reminded me of someone. But who?

Ah, James! That's it.

The man was wild to say the least. His deep brown hair was pulled into a loose ponytail at the nape of his neck and his skin was as pale as my own. His face was spiked from the lack of shaving and his eyes were red like that of a human thirsty vampire. But this was no vampire. This was a demon clad in an open leather jacket and a dirt stained pair of denim. His ferociously piercing crimson eyes scanned over my stiff form like a predator examining their prey. He was equally matched in height with Edward who went into a protective stance beside me. "Isabella!" Damien exclaimed as if we were long lost friends reuniting for the first time in centuries. That was partially true, except we were most definitely NOT friends. " It's been awhile." I noticed the sudden coldness underlying his tone.

"It certainly has," I said with false sweetness. If he wanted to play that card, then I would play it too. "Did you miss me?"

His face lit up into an evil, haunting smile. "Of course! What a shame to leave such talent like I had to."

My face sunk into a cold glare. Edward growled while Alice hissed. I hadn't noticed that she had taken a protective stance beside me as well. "I'm sorry that your talent must come to an end."

"Is that so?" he asked, clearly amused with his wild eyebrows arched in curiosity. His hard, crimson eyes then turned onto the two Cullen siblings beside me. "Are your friends so eager to greet death?"

"We've seen death, demon!" Edward spat.

"Have you? Not the death of a demon. Have you seen the firing pits of hell, young one?" he replied, an incredibly proud, knowing smirk on his face. He obviously enjoyed the fact that he went to hell; as if the burning sensation was the best experience of his damn existence. His hollow red eyes flashed back to me which I met with a cold hard glare. "Do you truly think my power is beneath yours, Isabella? Surely, you are smarter."

"We'll just have to find out now, won't we?"

The next few seconds were all one big, messy blur. The ground shook as if one hell an earthquake was interrupting. Only one creature could create such a motion. I heard Damien's loud, obnoxious cackling. Two could play that game! I called on all the elements and pulled every inch of my powers together. The Earth floor stilled its rumbling and a heavy gust of wind surrounded us like a cool blanket. I could tell that my eyes had clouded and were probably darker. I could feel the unsure vibe pulsating from my two partners, neither knowing what to do. _'It's all on you, Swan/ Acklin,'_ I thought.

The sky turned dark, clouding with heavy gray clouds. Lightning shot like Zeus himself was firing bolts from Mount Olympus. One struck Damien square in his shoulder. I gazed with pride at the crimson gash spreading from his chest. His haunting orb-like eyes pierced angrily into my equally dark ones. "You little bitch," he scoffed. For some bizarre reason, his reaction caused an eruption of giggles to fall from my mouth. Alice and Edward gave me a questioning, worried glance.

"No one _ever _calls my angel a bitch!" Edward spat in rage. I placed a gentle hand on his arm, giving him a soothing smile.

"Awww, poor little fallen demon. What's wrong, Damien? Can't take the heat?" I stepped closer to him, my hands braced at my sides just in case my words ignited the worst in him. He snarled fiercely at me which Edward snarled with equal ferocity back at him. I heard rustling around us which had not been caused by my wishes. Newer essences had arrived. Damien glanced around behind me. I didn't need to look to know that the rest of the Cullens had sensed our distress and came to offer their assistance immediately. I felt someone come immediately to my side and risked a glance to see my brother.

Jeremiah's eyes were just as dark as mine and heavy with disgust for the creature before us. He crouched, the muscles in his jaw tightening.

"Awww, you must be the soulless being that I was informed was protecting Isabella from me," Damien stated, cackling at the mere thought of anyone hiding something from him.

"You're damn correct!" Jeremiah answered, his voice hard. "And it's a job I take quite seriously."

Damien chuckled. "I see that." He spread his arms to gesture towards the seven vampires behind me. "Do you all no the consequences of taking on a demon?"

Before they could answer his question, I took another step forward. "Don't EVER threaten my family!" And with one flip of my hand, I had him pinned to a tree by an invisible force. "It's things like you that make this world filthy."

He managed to let out a breathless chuckle. "What?! Do you plan on killing me, Isabella? Hmmm, my sweet? You don't have the strength."

"No," Jeremiah spoke up. He grabbed my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "But I do."

I immediately understood. One human-like girl may not have the physical strength to take on a demon's. But vampires had ten times the strength of a human and were just as equal to demons. My clouded eyes turned to the caring vampire beside me, pleading with him to not let me do this. But with his gaze, he stared me down, letting me know that there was no point arguing with him. Quickly, I turned back to Damien who was squirming against the tree, drawing on his powers to release him.

I squeezed Jeremiah's hand, drawing on all of his vampire strength, my eyes never leaving the lustful demon in front of me. I could feel the energy taking over my every being. It was coming in even stronger waves now. I never felt more powerful. "Looks like the student has finally surpassed her master. Goodbye, Damien."

And with that, we watched as flames roared to life from nowhere and enveloped the evil spirit. For once, I saw a different expression. Nothing like the ones I had envisioned in my nightmares. Fear.

* * *

Authors Note: Finally my frends, this story is drawing to an end! Don't worry, there are still a few more chapters! Jake and Bella still have to confront each other of course! But please check out my other story "Delilah" which is still also in the works. I get writer's block like no other!! But I have every intention of finishing every story that I start. So please don't pout, yell, or scream. Oh, and PLEASE review. Because I still feel like my stories suck and some input and help would be wonderful. :

Love, Lana Cullen


	18. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: Not all of these fabulous characters are mine! You can thank Stephenie Meyer for that!**

It had been a week since defeating Damien. For the first time in five long years, I could sleep without feeling afraid. I knew it was partially because of my perfect vampire who stood guard protecting me in my dreams and in reality. Edward hadn't left my side since being in Forks and I was beyond thrilled that he stayed. Jeremiah had headed back to New York and would be returning in a week with Ryan and Matt for my big Seattle gig. I had taken particular care in organizing this concert. Every single being that was important in my life would be there. My father, the Cullens, and even the Quillettes were to be attending. I had gotten all of them backstage passes and front row seats.

I had called Jake several days ago, and was surprised how easily he forgave me. I told him everything, including me being a witch/ demon from hell. He took it surprisingly well. By well I meant he wasn't afraid of me nor did he want to kill me. We were best friends and nothing could break the bond we shared. He had even taken my advice of being with his imprint, whom I would have the pleasure of meeting at the concert. Things were perfect now and I could only hope they stayed this way.

"Bella!"

I groaned and bounded out of my room where Alice waited impatiently at the bottom of the stairs. "What are you doing here, Alice?"

"Is that any way to greet your sister, Bella?" she asked, her hands on her hips and an evil smirk upon her face.

I rolled my eyes. "It is when said sister is here on a Sunday afternoon to torture me?"

The pixie feigned shock and placed a hand over her open mouth. "Bella, how ever did you know?"

I laughed. "What else would you be here for?"

She giggled and sprinted up the stairs in vampire speed until she was standing in front of me. "Hurry and hop in the shower! We need to get you ready pronto!"

"Ready for what?" I questioned as she shooed me into the bathroom, reaching over to turn the shower knob on.

"Don't ask questions. Just hurry while I prepare your outfit," she ordered before leaving me alone to shower. I washed thoroughly before jumping out and toweling off. Alice was in my bedroom, tapping her little foot impatiently by my bed. "About time!" she said, throwing her arms in the air. She grabbed me and pulled me to sit down in front of my mirror. She began running a brush through my sopping wet hair gently before focusing on my make up.

"Alice, I'm pretty sure I can handle getting dressed on my own. I am a celebrity. I've been though this before."

"Bella, it's more fun this way. Besides, you don't even know where you're going."

I sighed and let her continue with her work on my face. When she was finished, she pointed to an emerald green dress on the bed with a matching underwear set and instructed me to put them on. As soon as she left me to get dressed, I took in the attire. The dress was beautiful and simple. It was strapless which explained the strapless emerald bra that went with it. The dressed stopped just above my knees. As I slipped it on, I pondered where on earth I could be going that required this type of attire.

When I was done, Alice reentered and handed me a pair of emerald heels with black lace embroidered around it. I slipped them on and Alice spun me around to finally face the mirror. I assessed her work and my face broke out into a grin. "Wow! Nice work, Alice. Thanks."

My pixie like sister smiled with pride as she jumped up and down. She handed me a pair of black chandelier earrings which I clipped on as she hooked a matching necklace around my neck. The doorbell rang and I gave Alice a questioning glance. She smirked knowingly before advising me to answer it. I cautiously headed downstairs and opened the front entrance.

There stood my greek Adonis. He was the definition of pure hotness. He seemed dazed by my presence before his face took on a full glorious grin. "Hello, my love."

I smiled, now fully excited to spend the evening with my perfect boyfriend. "Why hello."

He leaned into whisper in my ear. "You look absolutely stunning, Ms. Swan." I shivered when his cool, sweet breath fanned over my skin. He kissed the spot underneath my ear before kissing the corner of my mouth.

"I could say the same for you," I replied breathlessly as he pulled back and grabbed my hand, leading me out to the black Aston Martin parked in the driveway. I remembered the car as the one we took to the prom my junior year after the whole James episode. Always the gentleman, he opened the passenger door for me before hopping into the driver's seat.

"So what calls for this occasion?"

He flashed me his breathtaking crooked smile before placing a hand over his chest. "Does a man need a reason to treat the woman he is madly in love with to a special night?"

I snorted. "You sound exactly like Alice when you do that." He laughed with me and rolled his eyes. We drove to Port Angeles and stopped at the same Italian restaurant that we, well that _I_, had eaten at when we first met. We entered the restaurant hand in hand and I couldn't help but notice the hostess bat her eyelashes flirtatiously at Edward. I rolled my eyes. For some reason, this no longer bothered me. Maybe it's because I knew that Edward loved me and I him. Nothing and no one could come between that.

We were seated at our table which I also noticed was the same one we sat at the first time we were here. Our waiter came to the table, eyeing me as if I were a luscious piece of meat. I smiled politely and turned back to my menu. I heard a low growl and looked up to see Edward glaring menacingly at Sean, the waiter. Apparently, one of us was not over our jealousy issues. I grabbed his hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze, and mouthed _'I love you'_ to him. His eyes softened and he smiled lovingly at me as the waiter stomped away with our orders.

"I love you, Isabella Swan," Edward said softly. I leaned over the table to peck him on the lips.

"And I you." We made small talk as I ate, holding hands at all times. Edward paid and led me out to the car before speeding off. "Where to now?"

He smirked at me. "You'll see."

I sat back and enjoyed the ride. Ten minutes later we arrived at the edge of the forest, a place I knew all too well. My face lit up and I smiled brightly at Edward who had the same look on his own face. He held my hand as we made it through the dark outlines of trees until we came to the beautiful meadow. It looked radiant in the moonlight. I walked to the center and carefully sat down, trying desperately not to ruin the dress. Edward instantly sat behind me with his legs on either side of me so that I could lean my back against his hard chest. He wrapped an arm around my waist. "Bella…?"

"Hmmm?"

His hand reached to tilt my chin so that I was looking up into his gorgeous golden eyes. " I love you more than life itself. You are everything that I'll ever need in a soul mate. When I left, you had my heart. When you left, you _still_ had my heart. A part of me was always missing. Until now. I need you like a living organism needs air. Please say you'll be mine forever. Please make me the happiest man in the universe. Marry me." I gasped as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his mother's ring. "This has always and will always be yours. Just as I am."

I was aware of the tears trickling down my cheeks, but I was too shocked to care. I pulled his face to mine and captured his lips in a passionate kiss as pure joy took over me. This gorgeous, perfect specimen of man loved me and wanted me to be his wife. It all seemed so unreal. I pulled away to smile sweetly at him. "Nothing would make me happier than to be your wife, Edward."

After five years of running, I finally stopped at where I needed to be. I made it to where I belonged. In Edward's arms.

* * *

**I'm sorry it took forever and eternity to update!!! I can't apologize enough. That's the thing with being a full- time college student and searching for a job; it leaves you NO time for fun! I hope you all approved of this chapter though. There will be one more….an epilogue for the concert…and then this story is over! Sad, I know. But after this, maybe I can focus on my other story, Delilah. Anyways, thanks for the reviews! Love ya guys!!!**


	19. Epilogue

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the band mates: Jeremiah, Ryan, and Matt. Everything else is from the marvelous mind of Stephenie Meyer. **

**Epilogue**

BPOV

"You're on in five, guys!" the stage assistant called to us. _Ok, Bella. You can do this. You're only performing in front of all the people you know, love, and abandoned. What's the big deal?_

"I don't understand why you're so nervous?" Ryan asked as he tuned one of the guitars. Leave it to him to voice my concerns minutes before the show. "I mean it's not like you haven't performed on stage before in front of millions of people."

I flattened out shirt with my hands before turning around to face my band mate."Yeah. Millions of people I didn't know. But tonight it's different. In that crowd are my father, my fiancé, and his family. Even Jake and his imprint were coming with some of the La Push members. So this wasn't just an average crowd. These are people I care for. Not just tons of empty faces that I can't put names too." I turned back to the mirror, my gaze burning into my reflection. I needed to make sure I didn't walk out on stage with something showing or something flying off.

I had decided on making my appearance more put together since everyone in Washington that I knew and love would be out there. No destroyed jeans and graphic shirts today. Tonight I was wearing fitted black skinny pants and knee high leather boots. My top was a satin navy blue blouse that had a belt that held it around my waist. My hair cascaded around me in its usual waves and the only make up I wore was the black eyeliner and mascara that attempted to accentuate my eyes.

"You ready?"

I turned around to see "my brother" standing in the doorway. I smiled and nodded before allowing him to pull me gently out of the room and towards the stage. "Relax, Isabella. Try not thinking of it as putting on a performance for your family… but putting on the performance of a life time. Have fun and do what you normally do. Kill it." He flashed me a dazzling smile and I just giggled. Jeremiah always knew what to say and the right way to make me forget my fears.

We made it backstage and saw Ryan and Matt peeking behind the curtain looking out on the stage. "Looks like a full house tonight," Matt commented. Sure enough, as I peered behind the curtain, I could see the mass crowd of raving fans jumping and cheering like animals. I couldn't make out individual faces however, so I didn't know if anyone I knew was there.

Matt and Ryan made there way on stage as the music began. Both boys went around and grabbed their instruments. Jeremiah turned to me and kissed my forehead with his ice cold lips. "See you in the spotlight," he said before turning and heading out onto the stage. I sighed and let a smile spread across my face as I ran out to face the music.

I smiled brightly and grabbed the mike. "Hello, Seattle!" Cheers, whoops, and hollers followed. If I were to quit and share my forever with Edward, this was the one thing I would miss. The love and support I had from thousands of fans across the country. "Are you ready to rock?" I shouted once more, pointing the mike to the crowd so the shouts could be heard. I laughed sweetly and turned to wink at my band mates before the first song began.

_His little whispers.  
Love Me. Love Me.  
That's all I ask for.  
Love Me. Love Me.  
He battered his tiny fists to feel something.  
Wondered what it's like to touch and feel something.  
Monster.  
How should I feel?  
Creatures lie here.  
Looking through the window...  
That night he caged her.  
Bruised and broke her.  
He struggled closer.  
Then he stole her.  
Violet wrists and then her ankles.  
Silent Pain.  
Then he slowly saw their nightmares were his dreams.  
Monster.  
How should I feel?  
Creatures lie here.  
Looking through the windows.  
I will.  
Hear their voices.  
I'm a glass child.  
I am Hannah's regrets.  
Monster.  
How should I feel?  
Turn the sheets down.  
Murder ears with pillow lace.  
There's bath tubs.  
Full of glow flies.  
Bathe in kerosene.  
Their words tattooed in his veins._

Cheers and hollers were firing up with the lively fans and I could have sworn I heard Emmett over all of them. I laughed and raised my hand to try to simmer the noise down. "You guys are an amazing audience! Thank you!" The music to the next song started up.

_No sir, well I don't wanna be the blame, not anymore.  
It's your turn, to take a seat we're settling the final score.  
And why do we like to hurt, so much?_

I can't decide  
You have made it harder just to go on  
And why?  
All the possibilities...  
Well I was wrong

That's what you get when you let your heart win. Whoa!  
That's what you get when you let your heart win. Whoa...  
I drown out all my sense away with the sound of its beating.  
And that's what you get when you let your heart win. Whoa.

I wonder, how am I supposed to feel when you're not here.  
'Cause I burned every bridge I ever built when you were here.  
I still try... holding onto silly things, I never learn.  
Oh why? All the possibilities. I'm sure you've heard.

That's what you get when you let your heart win. Whoa!  
That's what you get when you let your heart win. Whoa..  
I drown out all my sense away with the sound of its beating.  
And that's what you get when you let your heart win. Whoa.

Hey, make your way to me. (to me)  
And I'll always be just so inviting.  
If I ever start to think straight,  
This heart will start a riot in me,  
Let's start... Start, hey!

Why do we like to hurt so much?  
Oh why do we like to hurt so much?

That's what you get when you let your heart win!  
Whoa.

That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa.  
That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa.

Now I can't trust myself with anything but this,  
And that's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa

More applause filled the air and I was giddy at the love and admiration I was receiving from my beloved fans_. _The lights surrounding the stage were a little blinding, but I thought I saw a bronze-haired guardian angel near the stage. My guardian angel. I smiled widely and took a seat on the stool that had been brought out for me.

_When she was younger  
Stood starting out the door  
Waiting for the day  
That she knew would surely come  
Tied bows in her hair  
Dressed as she thought you'd like  
But as time  
Ticked away  
Promises fade one by one  
And now she's all grown  
Made it through on her own  
Now strong enough to see  
That you've beneath way you wanna be..._

(CHORUS)  
No longer dying inside  
I will not let you define  
Everything I am by the one thing that I don't have  
Cause I'm more than that  
I will not be made to hide  
These tears won't fall for you this time  
I will not be ashamed  
Of my name  
Anymore...

(Verse)  
Sometimes she wonders  
Imagines what your like  
An emptiness inside  
That made you her miss her life  
She is silenced  
An ocean widens  
Leaves the daydreams behind  
Childish fantasy's unwind  
And now  
She knows  
Your not coming home  
Take the bows from her hair  
Cause she's been waiting 20 yrs...

(CHORUS)

Anymore, anymore  
Anymore...

During the song people had quieted greatly and all that could be seen were the shadows of people since the lights of the stadium had been dimmed in mood of the song. As soon as it ended, loud rounds of clapping erupted. That song had been a lot softer in contrast to the others and had a little more meaning. I smiled weakly and stood up to complete the other sets of songs we had planned to play tonight.

After the concert, that could very well be my last, I headed to the dressing room to change and meet those who had backstage passes. I slipped on a pair of black tights and a pink and black checkered, long sleeved dress. After putting my hair up into a ponytail and slipping on a pair of black flats, I headed backstage to see all of the people I held dearest to me. Charlie came over and hugged me.

"Wow, Bells. So much talent. Hard to believe you're my kid." I laughed and pecked him on the cheek before being swept up by Alice.

"Bella, Bella, Bella!" she screamed, grabbing me and bouncing up and down.

"Alice!" I laughed.

"You were great! And I love what you are wearing." I laughed once more, happy to get Alice's approval on my appearance. I then turned to get compliments from the pack and the rest of the Cullen's, including a very big bear hug from my favorite bear- of- a- brother.

My eyes quickly found a tall, russet- skinned man holding the hand of a petite, olive- skinned woman who looked nervous. I smiled and ran to hug Jacob who caught me around the waist while chuckling. "You were perfect, Bells." I thanked him before he turned and introduced his soul mate to me. I surprised the two of them when I pulled her into a hug as well. I was really happy for the two of them and their sweet future together. I turned and was immediately met with a flash of bronze. Edward was standing before me, grinning. He wrapped his strong arms around me, pulling me close to his hard body. "You did amazing, love."

I smiled and buried my face in his chest. "Thank you. I love you." He laid a kiss on the top of my head.

"I love you so much, my angel," he said softly. For once, I knew what I wanted in life. And I wasn't worried about my tomorrow. As long as my love was there, life would be perfect.

A/N: Thank you everyone for following me through my first fanfic. You don't know how much it means to me. I'm sorry that this story has come to an end and if the epilogue of this story sucked ass. I ran out of ideas on how to end it. But look on the bright side…it's a New Year and I will be making new stories such as the Covenant/ Twilight crossover I have started. By the way, if you're wondering who sings the songs I used for this chapter, the answer is Meg & Dia, Paramore, and Emmy Rossum. Please keep reading my stories. This isn't the end for me. Luv ya guys!!!

HAPPY NEW YEARS!!!


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